South Pacific Seclusion
by Pakmai
Summary: Q and 007 are a great team, Q constantly in 007's ear on missions. But this time, Q will be in the field with the double-oh. How will they cope when they have to pose as a married couple? Q's health takes a turn for the worse and they become trapped. How will Bond cope? Craig!Bond, Whishaw!Q. Post-Skyfall. Eventual 00Q. Bit of Sick!Fic later on. Reviews welcome! NOW COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1

It started with a touch, when the new Quartermaster handed the radio over to 007 so he could complete his mission against Silva. Q noticed it then, in their easy banter back and forth, the slightest bit of flirtation. He knew that was just how James Bond operated though. He doubted it mattered if the person was male or female, Bond would flirt with anyone who even remotely caught his fancy.

Then, there was the banter that continued, over the comms as Q guided his agent through the tunnels against Silva. Of course, he did come back with the ridiculous story that a dragon ate his Walther. Which to Q is only the beginning of his exasperation with the double-oh. Over the next few months, he finds his exasperation only grows every time Bond brings back or rather, doesn't bring back, his equipment.

It's not long before they become a strong team, Q and 007. Q is the steady voice in the double-oh's ear, and becomes pretty much the only one that the agent trusts and will work with. The friendly banter remains, Q managing to stay cool and aloof, no matter how much his affection grows for the agent. But there are times that he can't help a look here or there, or a slight smirk slipping through his defenses.

Months pass, and Q also develops several bad habits. One of which being that he forgets to break for lunch, sometimes dinner depending on how late he's at the office. And a lot of nights he's there very late, just going back to his flat long enough to collapse onto the bed and sleep, or shower, shave and dress in the morning. On the rare day off that he has, he des laundry, maybe manages to cook for himself, though that's surely more rare than he'd like to admit. Q convinces himself that he has too much work to do, too many papers to go through to take a day off. Luckily he's getting paid enough to have most of his clothes dry cleaned. He ends up keeping a change of clothes at Q-branch, and also has a comfortable sofa put in his office so he can get a few hours' sleep if he needs to. That only feeds his bad habit of living and breathing his job at Q-branch. And most of the time he's living on his earl grey. But still, he rules Q-branch with a firm hand, upping efficiency to an impressive rate, accepting nothing less than the best from the people under him.

In a way, Q feels that he needs to prove himself, since he is so much younger than any previous Quartermaster. A lot of people are not sure if he can do his job, but he proves to be most effective, clearly having a brilliant mind. More and more though he finds that James Bond hangs around Q-branch for longer than necessary when he's returning equipment, flirting with a minion or two sometimes, or just standing there asking how things are going for Q. He never stays more than half an hour, and for a while, the young man is convinced that 007 does it just to piss him off, or to just make a menace of himself.

The only other people that Q has regular contact with outside of Q-branch are Eve Moneypenny who becomes a friend of his, albeit one that apparently just wants to mother and take care of him. And then there's Tanner, who he deals with during double-oh assignments, so he knows what equipment he needs, and is more of a passing person of interest than an actual friend.

Needless to say, Q's personal life is nonexistent. He quells any rumors about him, keeps his private life private, makes sure that his history is wiped away. It's a very lonely life, the charms and good looks of the double-ohs not lost on him. He can admire them when no one knows he's looking, and though he hates himself for it, he even finds himself admiring 007. Not that he would, in his wildest dreams, imagine pursuing the attraction he feels toward the older man. He will not be another notch on that man's bedpost. But it doesn't keep the temptation from being there, the lure of the forbidden.

Almost a year after becoming the Quartermaster for MI6, Q is surprised to find himself summoned to M's office. He knows that Bond has a mission coming up, and he's not usually pulled away from his preparations for that. For some reason it feels like a death march as he pauses by Moneypenny's desk. "I've been summoned." He deadpans as he watches the woman.

Eve smiles a little, a mischievous look in her eyes as she nods. "I know. You can go right in, they're expecting you." She says with a grin that looks very much like a cheshire cat and unsettles Q's nerves.

Moving toward the doors, Q knocks politely before he lets himself in, confused even more when he sees who is in the room. Bond, M and Tanner are all there, Tanner standing beside M's desk and Bond sitting across from him. "Q reporting as ordered, sir." he says as he walks over to the empty chair next to Bond's, placing his hands lightly on the back of it.

Bond looks like he's about to burst, seeming quite pissed off, one hand gripping the arm of his chair so hard that Q is surprised he doesn't break it clean off. "This is a bad idea. It's too dangerous." He snaps at M in what seems to be a recurring statement, given how little attention M gives it.

M is focused on Q, and he glances at Tanner, who holds out a file toward Q. "We have a mission that we need your special skills for. It requires hacking ability, and you are the only one qualified to get into the machines we need you to, and still think on the fly in case our intelligence is incorrect." M says as he watches his Quartermaster.

Looking more than a little stunned, Q automatically takes the folder from Tanner, looking down at it. "You mean.. in the field, sir?" he asks in shock as he looks at M. "I'm not a field agent, sir. Surely I can accomplish more here-" He stops talking when M holds up his hand for silence. Still shocked, Q finally looks down at the folder in his hands to examine it more thoroughly.

Tanner clears his throat and decides to take the reins and break up some of the tension. "Our intelligence tells us that there is a certain arms dealer that will be visiting a certain area of the south pacific, there is a resort there that is very popular for honeymooning couples. He is bringing his new wife there. But more than that, we have reason to believe that man is part of a much bigger, very organized arms trade. He's going there for a business meeting as well as showing off for his new, very young wife. We need to know what he's selling and to who. That's where you come in, Q. He's going to have his laptop with him and that is what we need you to hack. There is no way to remote access it, from what we can tell, he's permanently disabled the wifi on it. He has a completely different laptop that he uses for online pursuits. So you have to make sure you get the right one." Tanner warns as he looks between the two, then he clears his throat. "Given what kind of clientele this resort caters to.. You two are also going to have to go undercover as a newly married couple." He says slowly, watching the others.

Bond still looks annoyed but he's simmered down some. When Tanner announces they have to pose as a gay couple, he just looks Q over slowly and smirks. "Well, he's a bit on the skinny side, but I suppose I could have done worse for myself." He quips with a smirk at Q.

Unfortunately, Q cannot take this as calmly as 007. He splutters a bit and stares. "Excuse me!?" he asks in shock, then he looks over at Bond. "Besides the complete ridiculousness of Bond marrying.." he points out, trailing off and shaking his head. "This is not going to work. I'm not a field agent, I am not going to be able to pull this off." he says in a slightly panicking tone, though more nervous because he saw the location, he knows he's going to have to take a plane, and then Bond will have more blackmail material than he could ever hope for.

Rolling his eyes a little, James gets up slowly and steps over to Q. "Now, now, darling." he says in a patronizing tone. "The destination will be worth the journey. I know you hate meeting new people, but just stay by me, and everything will be fine." he soothes in a quiet tone, slipping into the role with disturbing ease, even as he slides an arm around Q's waist. "Blimey, you really are skinny." he mutters as he looks Q over. "I keep telling you to eat, feed you up a bit more, but do you listen to me?" he says in an exasperated tone, still playing the part.

Q stiffens when Bond puts his arm around him, and he slowly turns his head to give James a disbelieving stare, then he sighs in exasperation. "The mission does not start for two days, 007." he says in a cooler, more collected tone. "I am well aware of your acting abilities, I have been in your ear and watching you on CCTV for the better part of the last 10 months." He points out as he glances over at the agent beside him. "I would not be worried about you pulling this off with another agent, but I am not an agent." he says quietly, though he does know how to fire a gun at least. He is in charge of all the R&D for the guns afterall, he needs to be able to use them.

M glances between them and he says, "I'm sure you two will figure it out. Your equipment requirements are in that folder, Q, I expect you to have everything handled by the time your flight leaves tomorrow evening." He says before he adds, "You're dismissed."

Q slips out of Bond's arms, hoping that no one has noticed the blush creeping up his cheeks. "I'll have everything prepared. Thank you." he says before he heads out, giving Moneypenny a glare for good measure before he quickly makes his way back to Q-branch, sending a few of his minions scurrying to follow the orders he barks at them.

It doesn't take long for James to appear in Q-branch, leaning against the door frame to Q's office. "Are we going to talk about this, Quartermaster? I think it's monumentally stupid for them to send the head of Q-branch out on a mission, but M is set on it. We need to get our stories straight. I think I set up a good bit of it back there. You being uncomfortable around people won't be hard for you to portray. I am obviously much more outgoing, you can even call me a bit controlling if you like." He says as he pushes away with his shoulder, stepping into the room slowly. "You having a busy job that makes me worry about how much you eat, or getting time to eat, is another easy thing. If you have to think about a lie too long, you'll cock it up." he says in a firm tone as he watches Q.

"I am aware of all of this, 007. I am the one who has to constantly tell agents that." Q points out, having recovered his cool demeanor apparently as he looks at the man. "If you must bother me, why don't you go down to Medical and get me some tranquilizers. That is about the only way I am going to get through this flight with my sanity intact." He says with a frustrated sound to his voice.

007 can't help but chuckle. "So that bit is true, about you being afraid of flying? Well, I should make sure my husband is in tip-top shape when we arrive." He says with a suggestive wink at Q. "Do let me know if there's anything else I can do, Q. Mmm. Think you might want to consider using the name Quentin. It will make it less suspicious when I call you Q." For a moment, he considers. "Oh, I think we should say that neither of us are comfortable with a great many displays of affection in public. It will keep your discomfort to a minimum, but you may want to brace yourself for the possibility you may need to kiss me at some point." he says with a cheeky grin, before he turns and walks out, determined to head to medical to find something for Q.

Q frowns a little as he watches Bond, then he blushes brightly at the mention of PDA or kissing Bond. That is going to get complicated. He's just glad when the agent leaves and Q can get some work done, though it is now more difficult to do.

"Bloody 007. Him and his comfort with sex. Has no idea."

* * *

**So here is my new 00Q fic! My good friend Duochanfan gave me the prompt for it, and provided me with a challenge as well, just to make it interesting. ;) Not sure how often I'll update, but I will try to make it at least once a week, if not more!**

**I hope everyone enjoys this so far. I would have continued but I'm about to fall asleep at the keyboard! :D**

**Reviews/comments are very welcome!**


	2. Chapter 2

Bond is feeling more than a little smug as he does as ordered and makes his way down to Medical, chuckling a little as he thinks about how he finally got to fluster the cool and collected Quartermaster. He's never seen Q so unsettled, and the double-oh managed to do it twice in one day. He's just about to Medical when he hears a soft, female voice behind him.

"007? I think I must need glasses, because there is no way that James Bond is voluntarily going to Medical when he's not actually bleeding to death." Eve Moneypenny walks gracefully up to James' side, looking him over for a few moments. "Or am I missing something?" She tacks on just to be cheeky, giving her secretive, mischievous smile at Bond.

Turning to regard the woman next to him, Bond smiles a little. "And a pleasure it is to see you, Miss MOneypenny. I'm not going to Medical for myself." He explains as he looks at her. "I'm going for our esteemed Quartermaster. It seems M has had the brilliant idea to send Q to the South Pacific with me on a mission." As he talks, his previous ire over that decision comes back with full force. "You don't send a bloody department head out into the field." he grumbles, shaking his head. Part of his annoyance is because it doesn't make any sense, and partially it's concern for his Quartermaster.

Eve just smiles and nods, looping her arm through James' in a casual way to complete the journey to Medical. "Mmm. I know, it doesn't make a lot of sense, but I've seen the file, Q really is the only one who can pull it off, if things do not go according to plan. You and I both know the likelihood of that is high. Especially with you involved." She points out with a little smirk. "I can't wait to hear how you deal with Q on a plane. I told you he was afraid of flying."

"Which is why I am going to Medical to see what they can give him. They can't knock him out completely, because we need to change flights at least once, and I am not going to cart his skinny arse across the airport." James grumbles, shaking his head at the very thought of carrying Q around anywhere.

Tilting her head back, Eve laughs loudly at that mental image. "Oh, I would love to have a picture of you carrying Q, though." She says with a bright grin. "You know... I heard you'll have to pose as a married couple. How are you an Q coping with that?" She asks, that same mischievous look on her face.

Becoming a little wary at Eve's interest, Bond watches her closely for a few moments as he tries to figure out her intentions. "Yes, we're going to have to pose as newlyweds. And I, for one, am doing just fine, it won't be the first time I've had to use this sort of cover. And I'm going to enjoy pushing Q's buttons." He admits with a sly grin, bordering on predatory. "Q, on the other hand, isn't dealing as well. He's going to have to get used to it fast if we're going to pull it off. He's not the best liar or actor in the best of times, and if he jumps every time I reach out to touch him, people are going to start thinking I'm abusive." He points out with a shake of his head. "I guess I'll have to start acclimatizing him between now and when we arrive at the resort." he says with another low, amused chuckle.

"Oh, you are a wicked, wicked man, Bond. You shouldn't tease that poor boy, you're likely to end up with him half in love with you at the end of your trip." Eve warns, shaking her head as she steps into the main area of Medical, just then bringing up her free hand which has some folders in it.

For a few moments Bond allows himself to consider that possibility, having the calm, collected head of Q-branch in love with him, allowing him to find out if there's any sparks beneath the icy exterior that he can fan into flames. Oh, no, that would not be such a bad thing at all. "I highly doubt that will be the case, Miss Moneypenny. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to find a way to medically calm my new husband." He jokes with a broad grin, letting her go before he heads toward one of the doctors.

Laughing a little to herself, Eve shakes her head, spotting who she needs to talk to, but she can't help but call after Bond. "Make sure no one else hears you say that, the rumor mill will start going crazy!"

Bond gets a few things for Q and then turns to head out of Medical as quickly as he can, never liking the place or the smell of disinfectant that always lingered there. To him it smelled of sickness and imminent death, something he's tried to avoid as long as he can remember. And while he may get shot at or blown up, he very, very rarely gets actually sick. When he returns to Q-branch, the minions suddenly try to look very busy. The young genius is where Bond left him, sitting at his desk. So he decides to start his acclimatization, and walks around, putting his hand gently on Q's back, thumb and forefinger curled around the base of his neck lightly. "Will we have any interesting trinkets for our trip?" he asks conversationally, dropping a plain white paper bag on the desk next to Q's hand.

Startled out of what he was doing by the hand on him, Q stiffens instantly and blinks a few times, looking up at the double-oh with a curious expression. "I intend to make trackers built into our wedding bands in case we get separated. There's the usual gun and radio of course. Though I'll be selecting a gun for me as well." he explains, before he turns back to his computer, trying to go through some of the intel.

"Do you even know how to fire a gun?" Bond asks skeptically as he watches Q, noticing the younger man quickly gets used to the hand on his back, or is at least ignoring it, so he starts to rub lightly at the muscles. "Bloody hell, you're tense, Q." he says in surprise as he notices the stiffness of his muscles, and instead he moves around to the back of Q's chair, resting both his hands on Q's shoulders before he starts a gentle shoulder massage through the cardigan and button-up that the younger man insists on wearing.

"Well, that is a hazard of working hunched over a workbench or at a computer." Q says quietly, letting out a little sigh as his neck starts getting rubbed, then he stiffness when he feels Bond behind his chair. "What the bloody hell are you doing?" He asks in alarm. Normally he wouldn't allow anyone to touch him like this, but he does realize what 007 is doing. He is a genius afterall. He knows that he'll have to get used to some touching and closeness with the man if they're going to be a couple. Of course, the fact that the agent apparently has magic fingers doesn't hurt either, and before he can say anything more, Q groans and drops his head forward, hands stopping on the keyboard, sliding off the desk into his lap.

Looking and feeling rather smug, Bond continues the firm massage. "You need to stretch once in a while." He mumbles, but he continues to work out the knots of Q's shoulder and neck. "Or you could just let me keep doing this for you." He decides to up the ante a little, lowering his head to speak much closer to the younger man's ear to judge his reaction.

"007, we are not on the mission yet. While I appreciate what you're trying to do, please try and keep it professional." Q says, reverting to his cold self as he pulls away from Bond a little, turning his head suddenly to sneeze several times into his elbow. "Well. That was certainly interesting." He says before shaking his head a little.

The sneezing makes James stop his massage, and he looks at the man with concern for a few moments. "Are you alright?" He asks with a slightly amused arch of an eyebrow.

"Yes, yes. It's just a sneeze, Bond." Q says with a little shake of his head, confused as to why the agent is reacting like that. "I think you had better go. I do have work to do, unlike certain double-ohs." He says as he removes his glasses to clean the lenses, before he slips them back on, glancing up at Bond. "I will see you tomorrow, 007." He says as a clear dismissal.

Bond smirks a little. "I think you had better get used to calling me James. Oh.. I got you that medication for the plane." He says as he taps the white bag, narrowing resisting reaching out to ruffle the younger man's hair. "Good evening, Q." He says as he turns and heads out of the office, thinking about the handsome young man who he's going to have a few days to charm, see if he can't get beneath that armor.

Q sighs a little, rubbing the back of his neck for a moment, feeling fatigued suddenly. But he has too much work to do, too much intel to go through and also too many things to organize. He glances over at the couch he has in his office, checking the time.

"Just a quick kip, then back to work."

**I hoped this chapter would be longer, but I'm still trying to work out a few things in my head. How long will Q be able to hold out against Bond's flirting? And exactly how WILL Q deal with the flight? Look forward to it!**

**I hope you all enjoy it so far, I know it's a bit slow and a little rough around the edges, but I hope you'll continue to follow Q and Bond's journey and mission!**

**Reviews/comments welcome, thank you!**


	3. Chapter 3

By the time Q wakes up and get some more work done, he figures it's too late to go home, and just crashes on his couch again, only to be woken up at 5am by Moneypenny, who looks less than pleased to see him there. "Go home, Q. You have a flight this evening, and you'll like it even worse if you haven't had a proper sleep in a proper bed. No need to give you back and neck cramps already." She scolds, helping him get up and into his jacket. "There's a car downstairs waiting to take you home."

It's a testament to how groggy and tired Q is that he only shoves a few things in his bag before he trudges toward the door without complaint or comment. Normally he would be up in arms about being coddled or told what to do but at the moment he's just too bloody tired. He doesn't even stay awake through most of the car ride home, jerking awake in surprise when the driver announces their arrival. It's all Q can do to get up to his flat, go through the security system he set up with its multiple mechanisms, disarming his alarm and then re-arming the perimeter. Finally trudging off toward his bedroom, he has enough brain power left to change into an old t-shirt and pajama pants and put his glasses and phone on the bedside table before he collapses face first onto the mattress and is nearly instantly asleep.

It's a good four hours later when he's stirred from his sleep with a small groan as he hears the buzzing of his phone. he realizes quickly by squinting at the clock that Moneypenny must have turned off his alarm, and his ringer. "Blimey.." he says as he scrabbles for his glasses and phone, not even paying attention to who is on the other end. "Q here." He says in a concerned tone, afraid of what might have blown up in his absence.

"Good morning, sleeping beauty. I'm glad you're alive. It would be rather embarrassing for Moneypenny if she sent you home only to have you die on her." James Bond's voice comes over the phone, sounding highly amused, with practically no background noise behind him oddly enough, except for the slight rustle of fabric that is undoubtedly his jacket.

"007. Goodness, something must have really gone wrong at the office if you're calling my mobile." Q say with a shake of his head, pulling himself to his feet. "Moneypenny turned off my alarm, I'll be in within the hour, I assure you." He says as he props the phone on his shoulder and starts to pull clothes out of his dresser, then he groans. "Make that an hour and a half, I forgot I have to pack for this bloody trip." He grumbles, still not awake enough to keep his calm demeanor properly.

"Not a morning person, I take it." Bond says with a slight smirk before he adds, "Well, I could shave a bit off your commute time, but that would require you to open the bloody door." he says the last part a little more firmly. "I have been standing out here for half an hour, I think your neighbor is starting to get suspicious of me. Good to know that you're a rather heavy sleeper, though." He sounds a little amused again, shifting for a moment. "I brought you tea to shave some time off your routine." He adds after a moment, sounding awkward.

Shocked, Q drops the phone briefly, catching it and fumbling with it for a moment. "You.. are outside my flat." He says in disbelief. "Right. Of course you are. Give us a moment." He says before he hangs up the phone. He doesn't even care about his appearance at this point, since Bond is likely to see him first thing in the morning, several times over, during their upcoming trip. So he just sighs a little, runs a hand through his messy hair and trudges toward the front door, unlocking it and disabling his alarm. He opens the door, looking over the double-oh in his crisp navy suit, the color complementing his skin tone and making his ice blue eyes stand out even more. Which of course just makes Q realize how ratty he must look at the moment. Huffing in impatience, the younger man makes a motion of inviting Bond in. "Well, come in then."

When the younger man opens the door, Bond has to admit he's more than a little surprised and slightly amused. His eyes drop to the bare feet of the boffin, traveling up the old, worn in plaid pajama pants, and up to the oversized t-shirt with its stretched out neck, a few small holes showing in it here or there, but other than that it's clean, no stains or anything on it. In fact, it looks like it could have belonged to Q's father, or Bond himself. Perhaps an ex-boyfriend, the agent considers thoughtfully. Finally his eyes travel up to Q's face, eyes still red from sleep, looking more relaxed than 007 has ever seen him his hair an absolute comical mess, but it just makes him look young and rather adorable. So he puts on his most charming smile and nods. "Thank you." he says politely. "You look bloody adorable, Q. No wonder you wear a tie and an old man's cardigan, you really do look barely legal." he notes with a slight smirk, taking a sip out of one of the two cups he's holding. One has his coffee, the other has Earl Grey tea, just the way Q likes it.

Mustering up a glare, refusing to be charmed by this pushy agent, Q takes the other cup from him. "The only reason I am even allowing you in here is because I don't want the neighbors to think we're..." he makes a motion between them, "More than just coworkers, and having a row in the hallway." He explains, sighing as he takes the top off the tea. Taking a sip, he pauses, eyebrows going up before he swallows, eyeing the cup. "Who did you bribe or threaten to figure out how I like my tea?" He asks, watching Bond curiously for a few moments. "Well.. make yourself at home, I suppose. Don't touch my tech, and try not to destroy anything." he says, vaguely motioning toward a work bench he has scattered with various bits of technology.

James smirks a little. "What makes you think I didn't figure it out myself?" He points out, mused, before he chuckles and takes a step closer to Q, into his personal space. "I'm disappointed, Q, where are your manners? Not going to give me the grand tour?" he asks as he motions around, then leans a little closer. "This may be my only insight into the workings of that complicated mind of yours. Who else can boast to have seen the inner sanctum of their Quartermaster's home? Though I am most interested to see how you decorate your bedroom.." He nearly purrs the last part as he looks at the young man in front of him, eyelids sliding closed slightly.

Deliberately taking a step back from the older man and taking a slow, deep breath - while trying not to relish the frankly intoxicating scent of Bond's cologne - Q gives him a pointed look. "I'm afraid that will just have to remain in your imagination, Bond, as I have no intention of showing it to you." He says simply, before he adds, "I shall be out shortly. Thank you for the tea." He tacks on the last almost reluctantly, before he turns and walks with purpose back to his bedroom, pointedly closing the door a bit harder than he needs to. Not long after, the shower turns on and he continues his morning routine as he finishes his tea.

Not able to help himself, James chuckles a little as he watches Q go. Maybe he's a little disappointed he won't get to see the most intimate room of Q's home, but he has more than enough to look through here. He is determined to crack open that shell of Q's and see what's inside during this trip. If for no other reason than he's intensely curious. The young man is an enigma. Hopefully, Bond muses to himself, he can find out some from his bookshelf. Lots of computer programming books, as expected, some art books which are unexpected, and then some novels. For some reason Bond is unsurprised that Q seems to have a weakness for science fiction and fantasy genres. Which may be why he's so shocked when he finds, tucked away on the bottom shelf atop some other books, a secret agent spy novel, which, from the summary on the back, has some romance to it as well. Of course it does. It seems that 007's boffin is a closet romantic. An interesting tidbit but not very surprising.

Q showers quickly, afraid to leave James - no, Bond - in the flat for too long by himself. He is thorough but quick, drying off swiftly and dressing. He pulls out a suitcase, sighing a little before he starts packing the things for at least a week stay, not sure how long the mission will take. Once he's sure he has everything, and making sure that he's presentable, he comes out of his bedroom with his suitcase, closing the door pointedly behind him. For a moment he's concerned when he doesn't see Bond, relaxing a little when he sees Bond crouched down looking over his extensive DVD collection. Putting his suitcase down with a slightly louder than necessary clunk, the young man clears his throat. "Find anything interesting?" He asks with a skeptical arch of an eyebrow.

Glancing behind him, James is a little disappointed to see the sleepy Q gone, and his professional Quartermaster back in place. "I should have guessed you would be a Doctor Who fan, but some of the others surprise me." He says simply, having thrown away his empty coffee cup while he was waiting for Q, and now he slowly stands, brushing nonexistent wrinkles out of his suit and buttoning his jacket up in the front again in a casual gesture. He lets out a little sigh as he looks at Q. "I am glad we're going to someplace tropical, maybe I'll get the chance to see you out of your bloody cardigans." He says with a little smirk as he walks over closer.

"Well, most everyone in MI6 has seen you out of your suit at one time or another, 007. I suppose there will be no surprises for me." Q says with a dramatic sigh before he reaches out and adjusts the older man's tie, straightening it a little. As if he did nothing out of the ordinary, he then proceeds to turn and casually walk to gather his coat and umbrella, making sure he has his wallet and all pertinent documents before he grabs his messenger bag and suitcase. "Shall we?" he asks in his usual cool tones.

If anyone were to ask Bond at that moment what was going through his mind, he would be confused and shocked. Never, in the year that he's been working with Q, has he seen the younger man voluntarily touch someone, and certainly not one of the double-ohs. All equipment is placed on trays to be given and received. There may be the occasional brush of fingers as something is handed over, but nothing beyond that. No touch of the arm or shoulder to convey a thought or feeling, no slap on the back in camaraderie. Q has remained an island unto himself, the calm center of Q-branch, unapproachable and unattainable. It's a wonder that 007 never thought about it this way. He continues to stare at the younger man for a moment before he recovers himself, clearing his throat. "Of course. My car is waiting outside.' he says with a smirk as he pulls out his keys. "Your flat is nice, but you could have chosen a better part of the city." He says with a clear note of concern in his tone for the young Quartermaster.

"I have three different security systems set here, of my own design, Bond. Rest assured, I am perfectly protected, and this neighborhood is hardly as dangerous as you make it out to be. It's not Kensington, but it's not bad." Q says indignantly with a small sniff. "Not all of us make huge amounts of money for our overseas jobs." He adds as they step outside the flat and Q arms his security and then locks the door in what appears to be a complicated way. Finally, without a glance at the agent beside him, Q heads downstairs, slightly amused since the lift has been broken for about a week, which means that the double-oh had to climb the three flights of stairs to his flat. When they reach the outside, it's rather easy to figure out which car is Bond's, and he sighs as he walks over to the Aston Martin. "If you were so worried about the neighborhood, it's a wonder that you left your car out here unattended." he points out, slightly amused as he puts his bags in the boot once James opens it.

"I am sure your security systems are truly frightening." he says as he looks at the young man, noting for the first time that he seems a little pale. "Are you feeling alright, Q? You look a little... pale." he admits as they get into the car.'

Q sighs a little, then he turns his head, sneezing several times into the crook of his arm. "I'm fine. Probably just allergies, they always seem to get the worst this time of year." He says as he gets comfortable in the car. "And believe it or not, the lights in Q-branch are quite flattering for my complexion." He says with only a slight sniffle, sneezing once more hard enough to rock his body forward before he pulls out a tissue with a frustrated sigh.

Making a skeptical snorting sound in the back of his throat, James shakes his head, starting toward Q-branch. "I take it you've gone over the intel, arranged for our identities and transportation once we're there. I've heard that the reservations at the Pacific Pearl have already been arranged." he says with a little smirk, naming the resort that they will be attending.

"Of course, Bond. I will brief you when we are back at MI6."

* * *

**This is really rolling now! I was giggling all through writing this chapter, I hope that you all enjoy it just as much. Soon they will be off to start their mission. No doubt Bond will find more ways to be incorrigible, because really, that's just who he is.**

**Hope you all enjoy it so far, there will be plenty more to come!**

**Reviews/comments welcome!**


	4. Chapter 4

The rest of the car ride is somewhat silent, and they do get a few curious looks at they walk together into MI6 toward Q-branch, making the younger man sigh in frustration. He knows how the rumor mill works and it's probably working overtime, especially since Q is carrying a suitcase. At least it's his newer suitcase and not the one he's had since before University which would probably raise some eyebrows.

When they are back in the safety of Q's office, one of his minions apparently having been informed that their boss was on their way up because he meets Q at the door with his mug of tea. "Cheers." He says gratefully as he accepts it, sighing when he gets to his office door. "Make yourself useful, 007." He says as he hands over his suitcase to the older man who merely looks amused, before he punches in his key code to the office and unlocks it to step inside.

Not taking the suitcase back from the double-oh, merely as payback for him showing up at Q's flat this morning, the boffin puts his mug down on his desk and sits down, loading up his computer before he picks up a file folder. "Our cover." He announces as he holds it out toward Bond.

Still bemused, Bond brings the suitcase inside and sets it down by the coat rack before he follows Q to his desk, accepting the file folder and starting to peruse it. An eyebrow goes up as he looks up at the younger man. "We've known eachother for a year, and we met at a museum?" He asks, chuckling a little as he thinks of their real first meeting and the beginning of their verbal sparring.

"I believe a certain someone told me to keep it as close to the truth as possible. We have known eachother for a year, and we DID meet in a museum, didn't we?" He points out as he looks up at the man, chuckling a little. Fingers fly over his keyboard as he logs into his system, looking between the two separate monitors on his desk as he goes over something or other. "Ah." He notes, suddenly seeing a cardboard box that was placed on his desk. Half-standing out of his chair, he pulls it over and digs through it for a moment. "Catch." Q says, already tossing a small box in Bond's direction.

James is not a double-oh for nothing, and he easily catches the small box in his hand, eyebrows going up when he sees that the object he so deftly caught is a small blue velvet box. "Rings?" He guesses, still having the file folder open in his hand. Turning slightly, he half-sits on the edge of Q's desk, one leg up on it, the other balancing himself on the floor. "Known eachother a year and getting married. That's rather impulsive of us. Must have been quite the whirlwind romance. I imagine I was reluctant to date you because of our age difference." he says as he looks at Q, trying to get a feel for the details instead of the bullet-pointed facts on the page.

"Yes, well, I can be quite tenacious." Q says casually, trying not to let his lips twitch up into a smile. "And you've never really been one to deny your desires, so I imagine your reluctance didn't last long, did it?" Turning his head a little to regard the agent - now sitting on his desk - from beneath his fringe, he considers before he adds, "I imagine after the first date I would have stopped having to chase you. You can be rather aggressive once you know what you want, Bond." He says casually, showing that he knows the agent a lot better than he lets on.

For the second time that day, James is caught a little off-guard by something that Q said or does, and it frustrates him because he's been trying so hard to get his unflappable quartermaster flustered. But, there is plenty of time for that, especially once their mission actually begins. He may be in control and in his element here in Q-branch, but the field is where James shines, and where he'll get away with being a little more physical. Slowly, he leans over, bracing himself with a hand on Q's desk, his head closer to the younger man's now. "You are right, Q. How could I resist someone so impish and charming as yourself? You would have been quite the challenge, I think I would quite enjoy unraveling all your mysteries, getting under your skin.." He speaks in a low voice, one that Q has probably heard before but only over the comms, a voice of seduction. Then he slowly, deliberately lifts his hand off the desk as he straightens a little, fingers brushing over the young boffin's bicep... only to pluck a piece of fuzz from his cardigan. "These really are a travesty." he says in his normal, casual tone. "Please tell me you brought something else to wear on the plane."

For a moment - only a moment - Q's fingers pause on the keyboard when James leans toward him, but he recovers quickly. "It's probably from that bloody car of yours." He decides when he sees the fuzz, "And apparently, seeing as we are married, you've gotten under my skin. Don't worry, James." He says, using the agent's first name for probably the first time. He also turns to look at the older man directly, a small, secretive smile spreading over his lips which speaks of a wealth of (possibly) naughty secrets. "I do enjoy indulging myself, and I am not, by any means, a virgin." He says before he rather pointedly looks Bond over. "I imagine it would have taken us.. hmm.. With our work schedules.. less than two months." He decides before he turns back to his computer. The smile fades from his face after a moment though, and he skips tracks. "Yes, I did bring something else a little more appropriate to our cover to change into. I hope you did as well. Also, that ring I gave you has a tracking chip in it, so please take care of it. Mine has one as well. Simple gold bands, I don't see either of us being the sort for jewelry, do you?" He asks, holding up another blue box which he then tucks into the pocket of his cardigan where he retrieved it from, before he returns his hands to the keyboard.

Trying very hard to control his thoughts, 007 takes a slow, deep breath, not wanting to get ahead of himself. He has a whole week to unravel his quartermaster, just like he promised. "Well, it's good to know that we enjoy a rather healthy sex life. I imagine you're the one that insists we get out of bed once in a while." He says with a slight smirk at the younger man. "Youth is no guarantee of stamina, afterall." he says casually as he continues to look through his folder.

A soft, warm chuckle comes from the younger man as he casually removes his glasses and picks up a cloth to clean off the lenses. Even slightly unfocused, Q is able to turn his gaze to Bond, the first time the older man would have seen him without his glasses. "Don't worry, 007. You don't have to worry about my stamina.. But yes, even I like a change of scenery once in a while." Eyes flicker over what he can make out of Bond's body. "Though at the beach it appears I will have the best of both worlds. All the scenery I love in one place, won't that be delectable. Fortunately I am rather secure in our relationship, and I don't feel the need to be jealous over the way others will undoubtedly stare at you. It may just make me feel a little smug, knowing that I've been able to tame the wild beast." By now he's turned his head back toward his screen, slipping his glasses back on his face. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have some work to do before our flight, would you mind taking that elsewhere?" he asks, making a dismissive, shooing motion with one hand toward James.

It's a very narrow thing, but Bond manages not to let his jaw fall open in shock. He had no idea that this side of Q even existed. Granted, they'd flirted over the comms before, but that's just Bond being himself, and it's entirely different to think that Q is just responding to keep him happy, versus the flirting and heated looks the young man is giving him currently. And yet he switches so quickly back to his cool facade that it gives Bond a bit of whiplash. Still, it also gives him hope that there might be a modicum of interest from the younger man that he can play upon once they're off. But he's also never one to do as he's told, especially when he's being ordered about by a cheeky young quartermaster. "I do mind, actually. I might have questions." But he does get up from the desk, moving over to the young man's sofa, laying out on it casually and putting his feet up on the coffee table that's in front of the couch, folder being placed in his lap as he looks it over.

Sighing a little in frustration over the agent once again not doing what he's told. "Of course you do." he says with some sarcasm. "I am surprised, you don't normally do this much preparation, I'm surprised you're even looking what's in that folder. You seem to fly more by the seat of your pants."

Bond snorts a little as he looks over what he can see of the rather adorable young man sitting at his computers. He allows himself a small, fond smile since Q can't see it from where he's sitting. "Does that mean you've been paying attention to the seat of my pants, Q? I often wonder what you look at on those cameras of yours. Abusing your power for cheap thrills?" he asks playfully, amused as he continues to watch Q, flipping the page in his folder.

With his head snapping around in shock, Q winces lightly since he turned his head a little too quickly. "I'll have you know, Bond, that when I am guiding you through a mission, the only way I am concerned with your arse is when I'm trying to keep it from getting blown off. And the only reason I use my cameras is for that means, to ensure that you come back in one piece." he says in an offended tone, not liking his professionalism to be questioned.

Well, that touched a nerve, and one that Bond would not like to touch again. He notices that any progress he might have made has just been sabotaged, so he nods mentally, making a note to say anything like that again.

"My apologies, Quartermaster. I was merely hopeful."

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**Poor, poor Q, he has no idea what he's in for. :D I have to admit, this chapter was super fun to write, having Q get a little of his own back against Bond. I am sure he will continue to hold his own, if only Bond would stop torturing him.**

**I hope you are all enjoying this as well!**

**As always, comments/reviews welcome!**


	5. Chapter 5

"Well, I am sorry to crush those hopes, Bond, but this is going to be a mission, not another opportunity to put another notch on your bedpost." Q says in an acerbic tone, apparently more offended by Bond's implications he was misusing his abilities than the double-oh had originally thought. Any trace of the soft, relaxed, playful tones that Q might have had before are gone, now he is back to being cool and professional, all his walls going back up.

Well, that just won't do. Getting up from his seat on the couch, James walks over and takes the liberty to dip his hand into the pocket of Q's cardigan, pulling out the ring. "We only have a few hours, might as well get used to this." he says as he opens the ring box, looking at the simple gold band inside. Unfortunately for Q, he's got rather sharp eyes, so when he pulls the ring out, he notices the engraving on the inside. "The Master?" He asks with an arch of an eyebrow, "Definitely too much Doctor Who, Q.." He points out as he takes the younger man's hand in his gently before lifting it to slide the gold band onto his ring finger. "Looks rather good there, actually." He says quietly, having perched himself on Q's desk again, but much closer to the young man this time. He continues to hold the younger man's hand deliberately, stroking his thumb across the soft skin of his hands, admiring the long fingers.

Hating himself the entire time, Q doesn't pull away, he in fact turns a bright shade of pink when the older man puts the ring on him, and he clears his throat a little. "You weren't meant to see that." He says simply as he looks at Bond, hoping he doesn't get the bright idea to look at his own ring. Of course that would be a little too much to hope for.

"Cheeky bugger." Bond accuses in a slightly affectionate tone, finally releasing Q's hand, "And what did you put on mine, then?" he asks, pulling out the box and pulling out the ring, eyebrows going up. "Old Dog? You've been talking to Moneypenny, haven't you?" He asks curiously, slipping the ring on his own finger, frowning at it for a few moments as he twists it around. It fits perfectly of course, it just feels rather strange on his hand. "Perhaps I'll let you get back to work, then." He says quietly, surprisingly not offended by the inscription on his ring. "I don't think you'll quite be the Master in this relationship." He adds with a slight smirk, before he gets up and moves back to his couch.

Only slightly flustered, Q pushes his glasses back up and he clears his throat. "Yes, I have had quite a few chats with miss Moneypenny." He says simply, "Now if you don't mind, I do have work to do." he reminds the agent for the second time, but there's a little less bite to his words, some of the affection creeping back in.

Bond returns to his place at the couch, amused and happy that he managed to patch things up a bit with his quartermaster. So he retreats to his folder, looking over the information thoroughly before he settles on just watching how Q moves around, doing his paperwork, work on the computer and managing his employees. He preps R on her responsibilities while he's gone, getting caught up in his work so he doesn't notice the time.

"You need to get ready, we need to leave soon, Q." Bond says as he approaches Q from behind, touching his shoulder lightly and watching the younger man jump.

Blinking a few times, startled by Bond's appearance behind him, Q looks at the time. "Blimey. Is that the time?" he asks, and then nods quietly. "Alright." he says before he stands. "I'll meet you out front in fifteen minutes." he says simply before turning to go over to his suitcase to get his clothes out.

A little amused at the boffin, 007 shakes his head for a moment. "Fifteen minutes." He says in a firm tone. "I'll arrange a car for us." he says before he strides out to go down to his lockers where he's put his own suitcase and such, changing into a comfortable pair of khaki slacks, loafers and a light button-down, short sleeved shirt. He has a light windbreaker that he slips on as well before he heads with his suitcase out front, having their airplane tickets as well.

When Q finally finishes with his branch and changes, he heads out front to find Bond. His change is a bigger one, wearing converse, and an old, soft pair of jeans that cling in just the right places, some small holes around the knees that are from natural age and use, rather than buying them like that. Above the belt that keeps those up is a simple light green t-shirt, which is a lot more fitted than his normal cardigans and button-ups, and it has a faded Triforce symbol from Zelda on it. Over that he has his normal windbreaker/parka and is carrying his suitcase. But more surprising than that perhaps is the fact that he's not wearing his glasses, even if he has it in his carry-on which is his messenger bag. "Ready to go, then?" He asks nonchalantly, putting his suitcase in the boot of the car that is waiting for them.

For a few moments, James has no idea what to say, he's never seen Q like this, and if anything, it makes him want to get to know his enigmatic quartermaster even more. He finds this new look charming and very attractive. "Well, then, Q. Who knew you wore contacts." He says with an arch of an eyebrow, opening the car door for the younger man.

"I don't like them. Also, my glasses help reduce the glare from my monitors. But, I thought it would be easier for me to use them for the flight at the very least." Q explains as he slides into the car, Stretching a little and leaning his head back against the head rest for a moment. He really is trying to remain calm. The clink of glasses together brings him out of it, and he opens one eye to look at Bond and the glass that's being held toward him. "Are you trying to get me drunk, 007?" he asks in surprise, arching an eyebrow.

"It will help relax you. And you should start calling me James." Bond points out as he wiggles the glass a little, having specifically asked for the car to be stocked after being concerned about Q's possible reaction to flying. "I am not trying to get you drunk, as amusing a that might be, I don't want to worry about you giving away secrets." he says with a slight smirk.

Q snorts a little, shaking his head. "No thank you. You don't know how the alcohol might mix with whatever Medical gave me." He says as he pulls out the little white bag.

"Suit yourself." Bond says with a little shrug, downing the drink and putting the glass aside. Silence falls after that, and unfortunately because of an accident, the traffic is heavier than they were expecting so they get to the airport just in time to get through security, where Bond gets Q a bottle of water. "You should take one of those now." he says as he sees the younger man's anxiety.

Getting through security is nerve-wracking for Q since he is very protective of his tech. That, and he's actually in an airport, very close to getting on a plane, so he's freaking out a little, trying to take deep breaths. A nod of his head is given to Bond before he pulls the white bag out, for the first time pulling out the two little bottles that are inside, which makes his jaw drop. "Muscle relaxants and bloody DRAMAMINE?!" He nearly yells, ending it in a hiss. Now he really does start panicking since he knows they don't have time to leave and get anything else.

Wincing a little, and starting to feel a certain amount of dread, Bond moves over and puts an arm around his Quartermaster's waist as he thinks the younger man might be closer to having a panic attack, quickly getting him over to a seat and sitting down. "At least we're flying first class.." he mumbles thoughtfully, mostly to himself. "Q, focus. Guess you should have checked the bag before we left. They must have mixed up the medications. You're going to be fine." He reassures as he crouches down in front of the younger man to look into his eyes.

Focusing on Bond, Q nods a little, fighting back the panic of his mind. He closes his eyes and takes a few deep breaths. "Alright.." he says just as they announce their first class passengers are boarding, and he allows Bond to pull him up, even allows the arm to stay around him as he numbly follows the man toward the plane and onto it into the first class cabins. He carefully places his bag in the overhead but keeps his mp3 player tucked into his pocket before taking the window seat. He quickly shuts the window and grips onto the arms of the chair tightly. "I can't do this." he decides, shaking his head a little.

Worried for the mental health of the young man beside him, James reaches over and puts one of his hands over Q's, before he shifts and places the other on the back of the man's neck to steady him. "It's alright, Quentin." he slips easily into his role. "I'm sorry that the chemist bollixed up the pills, but you'll be fine. We'll be on sunny beaches soon enough." he reassures as he rubs the back of the younger man's neck, listening to his breathing and watching his face.

"James.." Q says uncertainly, clearly distressed when he glances over at the agent. "I will not be fine. I can't do this. I know I said I could, for you, but I don't think I can." He decides, somehow managing to hold character. His breathing is starting to get quicker, heading straight for a panic attack.

"It's alright.. Listen to me. You can do this." James says, pressing Q's head down slowly to his knees. "Deep breaths." he says, glancing over at the stewardess who comes over worriedly. "We're fine. It's fine. Could we have two scotches, please?" He asks as he looks at the young woman, before he looks at the young man. At first he thought it might be amusing seeing Q squeamish about flying, but now that he sees how much genuine fear the man has, it's no longer funny.

For his part, Q is trying very hard not to panic. It's not helping all that much, but Bond's steady hand on him is helping a little as he puts his head between his knees and takes a few deep breaths. It doesn't seem to be helping though, and instead he's just getting a little dizzy so he sits up, eyes closed. "James.." he says uncertainly as he looks over at the agent beside him.

Deciding to change tactics, James flips up the arm that separates their seats, and then buckles both him and Q up before he pulls the younger man against his side. "Keep your eyes closed." he says, moving the arm that was around his waist to curl his hand around and put it over Q's eyes, feeling the long lashes fluttering against his skin. Smiling a little, he nods quietly. "Good.. Just keep breathing, Q.. Listen to my voice and keep breathing." he says quietly, before he slips his arm under Q's hand. "You know how to take a pulse, I assume. Take mine. Focus on my pulse, my voice, block everything else out of that brilliant bloody brain of yours." he says quietly, deciding to distract Q a little further by lowering his head and kissing the curve of Q's shoulder softly.

Little by little as Q does as James says, he starts to relax, closing his eyes but not trying to removes James' hand. He moves his hand over the older man's wrist so his fingers are pressed to the pulse point, focusing on the firm, steady pulse there. He knows this might look odd to others, but it's surprisingly effective, when he can get himself to just focus on James. That is, until the engines kick up and they start moving and he starts to panic a little again.

When the drinks come, James briefly removes his hand from around Q to take them from the stewardess with a nod of thanks. "Alright.. I want you to drink this, no complaints, love." he says, pressing the glass into the man's free hand.

Thankfully Q has other things to worry about other than the fact that James Bond just called him 'love'. He reminds himself it's all part of the cover, but he can't help a tiny little thrill that goes through him. Obediently, he takes the glass from the agent and lifts it to his lips, eyes still closed and other hand still clutching to Bond's wrist. He feels the burn of the scotch when he takes a drink, wincing and shaking his head. "Never could understand how you could drink this stuff, James. You know I prefer wine." he admits quietly, finishing the drink though and putting it aside. His whole body goes rigid, and his hand tightens on Bond's wrist when the plane jerks, slowing to make the turn in order to get onto the runway.

Finishing his own drink quickly, Bond moves back over closer to his young quartermaster, hoping to distract him by leaning in and placing a soft kiss on his neck. "Forgive me, love, I know you don't like this sort of thing, but it's the best way I know how to distract you." he says with a little chuckle. "Might want to loosen your grip though or I might lose circulation in that hand." he says softly, sliding his now free hand back around the man's body. "Just breathe, Q. Focus on me. Think about our ceremony, you know what you mean to me." He says, just to have something to say, reaching around to take Q's left hand in his, twining their fingers together so that their rings are pressing together. James places another soft kiss on Q's shoulder before he continues. "Try to relax, to sleep. It'll go by quick that way, and then we'll be in our bungalow by the beach, taking in the warm sea breeze. Maybe I can get a bloody tan on you.." He says with a soft chuckle, taking a deep breath when the plane accelerates and eventually takes off.

Q is trying very hard to focus on James but the plane is distracting him. He can't help but laugh a little. "Sleep." he says in a voice full of disbelief. "You won't get me to tan, James. I've told you, I just burn, I don't tan. I am unfortunately, rather thoroughly English." he jokes lightly, tightening his left hand in James'. He does enjoy the affection, and the fact that his distress allows him to enjoy the affection without guilt or fear of being weak or giving in too soon. It's part of their cover for one, and even if it wasn't, he could always excuse it as him being weak because of his panic, and extreme fear of heights. He does loosen his hold on Bond's wrist though, realizing he had a bit of a death grip on it. "Talk to me, James." he finally says in a soft tone. "T-tell me.. about.. about the ceremony. Tell me..what I mean to you." He says quietly, playing the part, but also wanting to hear James describe this fictional ceremony, see how well Bond can think on his feet.

Chuckling softly as if he knows Q's game, James smirks a little. "Minx." He mutters under his breath before thinking for a few moments. "I adore you, Quentin. Your sharp wit, your brilliant mind. And you're absolutely fucking adorable. You don't even know it, either, with your ridiculous hair, and that sexy voice of yours. And your bloody wit. Your tongue could cut anyone to pieces. Along with being exceptionally talented in other ways as well." Sure, he lies about that last part but he is fairly sure that Q would be a brilliant kisser. "You know how much I adore your body, and that tuxedo you were wearing during the ceremony.. I couldn't get it off of you fast enough." he murmurs softly, only for Q's ears, chuckling a little as he hears the way the younger man's breathing hitches slightly. "I'm glad that we chose a small ceremony, just our closest friends and family. I wish I knew how you found that little park and chose that spot under the trees. With the light breeze and the sun - a blessing, in London if there ever was one - making you glow. It made me fall in love with you all over again when I saw you there." Bond says this part a little louder in order for others to be able to hear it if they were listening in, cementing their cover with those on the plane at least, hopefully.

Q shivers a little, blushing as he listens to the man beside him. He keeps his eyes closed, surprisingly distracted enough for the moment that he doesn't notice he's on the plane, or the fact that his thumb has started to rub against Bond's hand slowly. He can't help his reaction, to have James' voice in his ear but to also feel at least part of the man's body against his and the breath brushing against his skin to accompany the words, it's intoxicating. He knows he has to hold strong but at the moment all he cares about is trying to distract himself. "It was lovely, wasn't it?" he murmurs quietly, finding himself relaxing despite himself. And once the tension starts to go out of his body he is feeling suddenly very sleepy. Idly he wonders if Bond put something in his drink, but if he had access to something, why not give it to him before now. Cutting off that thought, Q takes a slow, deep breath. "I think I might be able to sleep, afterall.." he mumbles softly.

"Good, Q.. get some sleep.." Bond soothes quietly as he watches the younger man, kissing the side of his head through his soft hair. "Go on, lean on me." He says quietly, waiting until the young quartermaster arranges himself comfortably before he rests his head gently on the other's, listening for a few moments until his breathing evens out and he feels all the tension slip out of the younger man's body.

"Sleep well, Q."

* * *

**Long chapter! The longest so far, I think. I just couldn't find a good stopping point, and I wanted to put a little bit of panicking Q in there. Go Bond, being able to calm down Q like that.**

**Hope you all enjoy!**

**Reviews/Comments welcome!**


	6. Chapter 6

The next thing Q knows, he's starting to wake up, and there is a gentle hand running through his hair. Sleepily, he tilts his head back into the touch lightly, feeling as much as hearing a soft chuckle coming from closer than it really should. He realizes that whatever he's resting his head on must be a person, and he wonders why his brain is feeling so fuzzy, he's not usually so slow to wake up. But then again, he is feeling a little reluctant to wake up when he feels so comfortable, and the hand in his hair really is nice. Of course, he's not even sure why he's awake since all he wants to do is sleep.

Realization comes when Q gets close enough to consciousness that he remembers the mission, being on a plane of all bloody things, and that the person so gently running his hand through the young man's hair must be Bond. Still, they are supposed to be married and it is rather nice, so he just sighs out as he opens his eyes slowly, lifting a hand to push up his glasses automatically only to remember he's not wearing them, so he just rubs his eyes a little instead. "Feels nice. That's such a lovely way to wake up, James." He says quietly, though there's a tenseness in his body that betrays his calm voice and says he knows exactly where they are.

"I'm glad. We're getting ready to land, Quentin. I didn't want you to startle awake when we suddenly touched down." James says quietly, having had a pretty standard flight beside the young man leaning against him, who he finally arranged into a more comfortable position and watched over. At least until he tried to wake up Q when the pilot said they were starting their descent. "It's ok, Q. I've got you." he says quietly, smirking a little to himself as he presses a soft kiss to the top of the man's head. He's found out something new already, that Q enjoys having his hair stroked, and that he's rather cuddly given the chance. Bond considers Q for a few moments, and all the walls that the man normally has up, wondering about the cause for all of that protection around his emotions, his mind, his heart. He's in a veritable suit of armor from what Bond can tell. And all he has to do is find the one chink that will bring it all down. Not an easy task. But one that he feels up to.

Q makes a small sound as he adjusts himself against Bond. "You put something in my drink, didn't you?" he accuses, but at the same time he's thankful, because it means that he spent the flight, or at least the first leg of the flight, blissfully asleep.

Chuckling a little and pressing another soft kiss into Q's hair, Bond nods a little, his slight stubble catching on Q's hair. "Yes, half a sleeping pill. I'm always prepared, and I wasn't sure what Medical had given you. Now I'm glad that I did. How are you feeling?" He asks with concern, leaning back a little and bringing his free hand up to tilt Q's face up slightly so James can look into the younger man's eyes and try to judge just how the drug has affected him.

For a few moments, Q smiles and watches James, enjoying being able to examine him this closely and admire him, from the straight, serious line of his lips to his bright blue eyes that can be as warm as the sky on a summer's day, or as cold as ice. Finding himself shivering briefly, he stares at James, and then nods, forcing himself to sit up properly. "I'm fine..." he says as he stretches a little. "A little groggy. I could eat." he says thoughtfully, "I do hope we'll have enough time during our layover for something to eat, and for some of this to wear off before you drug me again." he says with a slight smirk at James. "How am I supposed to trust any food or drink you give me, after this, hm? Not the best way to start off our honeymoon." He scolds, his voice still cool, but with a little affection to it.

"You know it was for your own good, Q." James says in return, shaking his head. "You never would have been able to manage the flight without it." he says knowingly, reaching out to put his hand on the back of Q's neck, rubbing it lightly as he pulls the younger man closer to him, resting their foreheads together. "Don't be cross with me, Q.." He pleads softly.

For a moment there Q honestly thought the double-oh was going to kiss him, and that was going to be highly embarrassing. So he's glad when Bond just tilts their foreheads together. Giving a good approximation of a long-suffering sigh, Q closes his eyes for a few moments. "I'm not cross." He says patiently, letting one hand come up to rest gently along the side of Bond's neck. He's well aware that the people around them have curious ears open in their direction, probably hoping to hear a row between the mysterious couple, so is sure to stay 'in character' as it were. "I'm sorry. I'm just groggy, you know I'm no good before my first cup of tea." He points out, shifting his head to brush their noses together lightly with a small smile. He can almost pretend this is real, and all those lovely things that James described earlier are real. But he knows that they have a mission and this is merely a part they both have to play. With that cold bucket of water thrown on his head, metaphorically speaking, Q slowly pulls away from Bond, blinking his eyes open again, especially when he feels a sharp drop when they start their descent in earnest. "Bloody hell." He mutters, glancing around nervously.

"Q, look at me." Bond says firmly, using his hand already resting on the boffin's shoulder to turn his head toward him. "I'm here. You're not alone. You're safe." he says in a firm tone with a soft smile crossing his lips. Reaching out with his other hand, he takes Q's left in his right, never taking his eyes away from the other man's as he lifts Q's left hand and gently kisses his fingers over the ring softly, giving it a little squeeze.

The action, which is so very chivalrous, startles a laugh out of Q, and he smirks slightly as he watches the agent. "I am not a bloody damsel in distress. I merely happen to have an irrational fear. We all fear something. Mine is just a little stronger than most." He says defensively, and seems a little startled once the plane jerks when they touch down. "Bloody hell." He breathes, eyes closing for a few moments as he squeezes James' hand, then nods, his walls slowly coming back up. "I'm fine." he says quietly, then pulls back and straightens. "I'm fine." He says in a louder, firmer tone, pulling himself away from Bond and straightening his rumpled clothes a bit, running a hand through his hair to smooth it down from where he's sure that James mussed it up.

Nodding a little, James withdraws his hands and sits back in his seat, stretching a little the best he can while still seated. "We have a three hour layover, and then another ten hour flight." He says before he sighs a little, looking around as he feels the plane slow down and turn slightly in order to park at a terminal.

For Q, the rest of the flight is sort of a blur. He gets something to eat, takes the other half of the sleeping pill and passes out on James again, only to be awoken in a similar manner. But he's more groggy this time, and so barely registers anything until they get to the resort. It's about sunset when they finally reach their bungalow, and now Q is awake enough.

"This is Moneypenny's doing. I realize we're supposed to be a honeymooning couple, but it seems rather inconvenient for our accommodations to be so isolated." Q says as he looks around, since they basically have a cove to themselves, their bungalow on stilts out over the water, a long wooden bridge leading from the parking area to the room. Upon entering the small house, Q is relieved to see that it's somewhat modern, one wall facing the sunset is a large door, which has a curtain that can be drawn across it, and presumably some sort of door but he doesn't see one. It leads out onto a covered deck which has a small table with two chairs and stairs that lead down to the water for easier access should the guests want to swim. The main living room area is separate from the bathroom and the bedroom. Both of which are very open, with large windows. The isolated location meaning that privacy is not as big of an issue as if it were one of the clusters of bungalows the resort also has.

James looks around, taking a small device from his bag and sweeping the area for bugs before he nods to Q to indicate it's clean. "I am sure Miss Moneypenny has better things to do than interfere in our mission." he scolds lightly, though in truth he did conspire with Moneypenny to convince the higher ups that this would be more appropriate for their cover. "Besides, we can talk freely here. No prying eyes, no ears expecting us to be shagging our brains out. I thought you would be more comfortable." He points out as he looks at the younger man, taking their suitcases into the bedroom, starting to unpack his own into the drawers and the closet. "Which side of the bed do you prefer?" he calls casually into the other room.

"You are not seriously suggesting we share a bed." Q says in disbelief. "I will be quite content to sleep on the couch." he says as he walks over to it and sits on the edge, realizing that it is very comfortable, and he'd be quite happy there.

Stepping into the doorway between the living area and the bedroom, James shakes his head a little. "Q." He says in a firm voice. "Don't be ridiculous. Besides the fact that we're supposed to be married, we are two adults, there is no reason we cannot share a bed." He points out patiently, sounding a little exasperated. "Or am I so very repulsive you can't stand to do even that much?" he challenges with an arched eyebrow.

Sighing quietly in defeat, Q gives James a look and shakes his head slightly. "You know very well you are anything but repulsive, James." he says as he gets up from the couch, looking around the room before he steps out onto the balcony. "It really is beautiful here.." he says as he looks out over the ocean.

"Glad you like it, it's always nice when missions bring me to locations like this." Bond says as he walks across the living area, stepping up behind Q to put one hand on the railing on either side of the younger man. "How are you feeling?" he asks in concern as he watches him. "I imagine it will take us both a day to get used to the time zone. We have two days before our target gets here, to learn the lay of the land as it were. And to acclimatize ourselves to the time zone. Also so it won't be conspicuous that we arrive at the same time." he says, smirking a little. "We have plenty of time to establish ourselves as the loving honeymooners." he says, lowering his head to kiss Q's shoulder lightly.

Stiffening when Bond comes so close to him, Q frowns lightly. "Please keep in mind that the honeymooning couple is merely our cover. We are not here for a romantic liaison." he says in his normal cool tone of voice, any traces of his previous affection gone. He's a much better actor than anyone gives him credit for. In truth, all he wants to do is lean back against Bond and for a little while, pretend that they really are a couple in love. But that is not the sort of thing that James Bond goes for and Q knows this. He would never try and change the older man, accepting that he has trouble with commitment, and that's fine. But Q can't let himself get caught up in that sort of relationship, wondering when he is going to be abandoned, when it becomes too intimate for Bond to stand. That sort of uncertainty is not something the younger man can deal with, so it's better just to keep him at arm's length.

Of course, Bond is nothing if not persistent, and he merely chuckles as he feels Q stiffen. "There's no one else here, Q. No one to pretend for, no one to give you a lecture about propriety." He points out quietly as he looks at the younger man. "We can actually enjoy ourselves while we do this." he offers as he tilts his head, placing a light kiss on Q's neck. "Besides, you're going to have to get used to a certain amount of physical intimacy from me, in order to keep up appearances. It would have been natural for me to kiss you on the plane, for example, but I didn't because I was afraid of your reaction." He notes, moving away finally to shed his windbreaker, slipping out of his loafers as well before he starts to unbutton his shirt. "I think we should order in dinner tonight. Pick something out from the room service menu, would you? You know what I like. I'm going to go for a swim." he says before walking into the bedroom to finish changing into his swim shorts.

Q is a little relieved when the older man moves away, and he turns slightly, enough to watch the agent remove his shirt, quickly turning back to look at the water. "Very well." he says stiffly, going over and retrieving the menu. "They must have buried the phone lines." He observes as he looks at the phone, realizing how well the lines were hidden, idly wondering if they run beneath the bridge or if they were buried underwater. Either way, he picks up the phone and orders, doing a bit of a double take as he watches the double-oh come out from the bedroom and go down to the water, admiring the body that Q's only seen hints of through the perfectly pressed suits that the older man is always wearing.

Pausing at the top of the stairs as if sensing Q's look, James turns a little to look at the younger man, smirking lightly. "You could always join me, Q." he says as he looks over the younger man slowly.

"I'm quite alright, and I want to check in with Q-branch, make sure no one has burned the place down yet." Q says, clearing his throat as he digs out his laptop and sets himself up. He refuses to look at the double-oh again as he sets up a secure line for his laptop.

"Do go on, Bond, don't let me keep you."

* * *

**Ohhh.. and now we're getting to the good stuff. Will James be able to find the chinks in Q's armor? It's not exactly like Q was shutting James down completely, though, was it?**

**More to come, I hope that you are all enjoying this.**

**Please review/comment, let me know what you think!**


	7. Chapter 7

It's a very good thing that Q pays attention on missions, because he knows what Bond prefers to eat. He makes sure that his laptop connection is secure before he checks in with Q-branch, knowing that it' the night shift over there so not wanting to disturb anyone, which means he enters the system discreetly like only he can.

Realizing that they're supposed to be a honeymooning couple, and Bond is swimming while he's still in his normal clothes, Q gets up after a few minutes to strip down, tossing his clothes carelessly aside before changing into a light linen pair of pants but no shirt, mussing up his hair to give it the 'just-shagged' look. Nodding a little to himself in the mirror, he then walks back into the main area to sit at his laptop. When the food arrives, he shuts everything down quickly and walks over to the front door. He still hears Bond out in the water, so he just lets the young girl in, pointing to a table. "Put it right there, if you don't mind." he says before he pats his sides. "Oh.. blimey. My wallet is in the.." He slowly indicates the bedroom, managing to conjure a thought that makes him blush, "And all I have are British pounds.. is that alright?" He asks hesitantly. When the girl gives a knowing smile, and nods a little, Q turns and heads into the bedroom, digging around for his wallet to pull out a few pounds to give to her, seeing her out before he walks toward the edge of the balcony. He knows the girl will be taking her time going back, so he smirks. "James! Get that gorgeous arse out of the water!" He yells over the balcony playfully. "Dinner is here, and you bloody well better not be too tired!" He says with a cheeky grin as he leans over the railing a little to see if he can find Bond, thinking at least to grab a towel he can drop down on the agent's head.

Between the sound of the water and his own thoughts, Bond doesn't hear the food arrive, he just looks up in surprise when he hears Q calling down to him. For a few moments, his jaw drops in shock that Q just said he had a gorgeous arse, then he realizes someone must be nearby that could hear them, so he chuckles, and hauls himself out of the water, coming up on the stairs a little to smirk up at Q, noticing the younger man is shirtless and he suddenly becomes very interested. "You know I'm never too tired for you, Quentin. But not until you eat something. I don't want you passing out on me tonight." He says, then laughs as he gets a towel dropped on his head for the trouble, rubbing his hair dry before he heads up the stairs. "I'm going to get you for that!" He says as he hurries up the stairs, taking them two at a time.

This was not something that Q was expecting, and for a moment he's frozen in place, looking like a deer caught in headlights. And then he realizes that he has no idea what James is going to do when he gets to the top of the stairs, and that's when he panics, turning to rush toward the bedroom area. But he only makes it a few steps before he's caught around the waist by a very strong pair of arms. "James!" He gasps in shock, right before he's turned and tossed gently onto the couch, suddenly finding a still wet double-oh on top of him.

James grins, using his skills to pin down the younger man, laughing softly. He lowers his mouth closer to the young man's ear. "Don't worry, Q. Just having a bit of fun, for whoever is listening. You started this." he whispers into Q's ear with a soft chuckle. Of course, it also has the added benefit that he gets to tease the younger man a little. He didn't realize that the man beneath him would look so delectable without a shirt on. It's really not fair to the double-oh.

For a few moments, Q lays there a little stunned, having a half-naked, wet James laying on top of him is a bit of a sensory overload for a few moments. Then the words finally register, and he sighs, rolling his eyes a little at the double-oh. "I thought you wanted me to eat?" He asks, sounding amused as he looks up at James. "You know I'm always up for.. other activities... but then the food will get cold, and you know how easily I'm distracted from such mundane things." he says with a sly smile, freeing one of his arms from Bond's hold. "Of course, I'm more than up for forgetting dinner.." He says as he trails his fingers up Bond's spine. At least until he hears a car door close, then he stiffens and tilts his head back to look toward the door. "I think they're gone now." He says, looking up at James expectantly.

Arching his back slightly against the touch, James briefly closes his eyes before he, too, hears the car door close, looking down at Q. "You are a bloody tease." He decides, before he considers. "This is a good opportunity to get you used to one thing, though." he notes, before he leans down and presses a soft kiss to the younger man's lips.

Shocked at first, Q decides that yes, this is something t that would be better for him to get used to now, so for a few moments, he indulges himself and responds to the kiss, letting himself learn the best way their lips fit together, what seems to make James respond more. Of course, then he comes back to his senses, and he pushes the agent away, taking a deep breath. "I believe that is enough, I won't be quite so shocked should you have to kiss me in public." he says simply, trying to keep with his even, cool tones but failing slightly. Clearing his throat, he glances around. "The food really is getting cold, though."

Though he wasn't expecting Q to respond so well, James eagerly takes advantage of it, knowing that the younger man might come to his senses any minute. Of course, he's a moment away from deepening the kiss when Q pulls away, and he sighs a little. "Bloody tease." he mutters before he slowly pushes himself up and off. "You really do need to eat more, Q." he says as he looks over the thin form of the quartermaster, moving over and taking the covers off the food, starting to pick at the food quietly as he glances over at the younger man.

Recovering himself and slowly sitting up, Q shakes his head slightly, having a bit of whiplash from the sudden mood changes, but it's for the best, that's what he tells himself. "Really, Bond, you should change." he says, throwing the towel at the older man, watching him snatch it out of the air easily. Then he stretches a little and sighs. "Blimey, I hate contacts." he mutters, rubbing his eyes for a moment before he moves over to his food and sits down to start to eat. "I checked in with Q-branch, everything seems to be doing well. I was considering the best way to use our time in the next few days until those that we're waiting for arrive." he says as he focuses on his food.

Taking pity on his quartermaster, Bond goes into the bedroom to change into some proper shorts, and putting on his button-up shirt from earlier, though he leaves the front open for the young genius' viewing pleasure. "Lets take this out onto the deck, it's a beautiful evening." he says as he looks out at the deck, picking up their food before Q can say anything, luring the young man out into the fresh air to watch the sunset.

Sighing a little, Q gets up and follows Bond - and the food - out onto the deck, sitting down again to finish eating. "Alright. There are quite a few things to do here at the resort that would get us access to different parts." He says as he looks around for a few moments.

James sighs and rolls his eyes. "Q." he says, reaching across the table and putting a hand over the younger man's. "We have two days. We can actually enjoy ourselves. Leave it to me, it's not like it's my first intel mission." He points out quietly as he looks into the wide eyes of his companion. "You are here to hack a computer, and provide a cover story. You are not here to do my job." He says in a firm tone, and as much as he's having fun pretending to be in a relationship with Q, he also still hates M for sending a department head as important as his Quartermaster, into the field where he could get hurt.

Frustrated, Q pulls his hand back sharply and sighs, sending the agent a glare. "You will not make me feel useless, 007." he says in a firm tone. "This is not an excuse for me to have a vacation, and you seem to forget that I am more than capable, and am not some wilting flower." He says before he stands up abruptly. "A swim sounds lovely. Why don't you go and do the job you say you're so good at, Bond, it appears they had a fully stocked bar at the main building." He says in a cutting, cold tone, rather pissed at the moment, turning and heading to the bedroom, closing the door forcefully, coming out a few moments later in swim trunks with a towel and a bottle of water, moving down the stairs to dive gracefully into the soft waves.

Knowing better than to try and talk to Q until he's calmed down, James just sighs as he watches Q go down for a swim. Over the last few days, he's found he's not only interested in Q just to see what makes him tick, but he's also got genuine interest in the man, in a way that he hasn't felt since Vesper. And while that frightens him, Q is something different, he understands the job and the double-oh is hoping that the young man will not ask him to leave the job he loves. Plus they work so well together. James muses over these thoughts as he finishes his meal, finally sighing and getting up to grab his mobile as he hears it start going off. "Bond." he answers without even looking to see who it is.

"So? How is it going?" Eve's voice comes over the phone, sounding rather eager. "Is Q rubbish at acting?"

"Actually, he's brilliant. And a bloody flirt and tease. Things were going ok, actually. I think he's a closet cuddler." James says with a little smirk as he considers it, shaking his head and then sighing. "Apparently I said something wrong, though, he's closed up." He says quietly, having talked to Moneypenny about this mission a little, and may have made some insinuations about trying to get beneath Q's rather thick armor.

"Ohh.. a cuddler. That sounds rather.. intimate." Moneypenny says with a little laugh. "Bloody hell, James, what did you do to cock it up?" She scolds in a disapproving tone.

James sighs a little, listening to the sounds of splashing from below before moving back into the bedroom to keep the conversation quiet. "Don't get your hopes up.. I gave him a sleeping pill for the plane.. well and truly afraid of flying, by the way." He sounds a little frustrated. "I don't know what I did." He pauses for a few moments. "Alright, well, I may know what I did." He says with another little sigh.

Moneypenny groans a little in disappointment. "Bloody hell, James.. you did cock it up. What did you say to the poor boy?" She asks in a scolding tone.

"I told him he was only here to hack a computer, not to do my job in getting the intel." James explains, sounding a little guilty. "In retrospect, not the best thing perhaps. How do I fix it?" he asks, frustrated as he peeks out of the bedroom door. With any normal person, or a normal woman, he would know how to fix it, with sweet words, gifts, and seduction. But this is Q, who is hardly a normal person.

"The famous seductor, James Bond, doesn't know how to make his boffin feel better?" Moneypenny taunts, before she laughs a little. "Grovel." She offers, "And if that doesn't work.. You're James bloody Bond. Show him what all the fuss is about. Worked for me." She says with a little chuckle. "Since when were you uncertain about anything, anyway?" She points out.

Nodding a little to himself, James smirks slightly. "If you tell anyone about this, Moneypenny, I will make your life hell. Goodbye." He says before he hangs up and changes back into his swimsuit to head down, silently slipping into the water. He moves up behind Q, who is just floating there not paying attention, sliding his arms around Q's waist. "I'm sorry." he says softly.

Q gasps, nearly inhaling water, shocked as arms are suddenly around him. "Bond! Bloody hell, don't sneak up on me like that, there are sharks in these waters, you know." he scolds as he glances over his shoulder at the other man. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" he asks, struggling for a moment to get out of the arms until he realizes that the agent is not going to let him go anywhere until he's got whatever he wants to say off his chest.

Holding the lean man easily in his arms and keeping them both afloat, James watches Q for a few moments. "I didn't mean to imply you weren't important to this mission. You're probably one of the best quartermasters we've ever had, I'm merely concerned for your safety. You're too important to lose." He says quietly as he continues to hold the younger man from behind, lowering his head to kiss his bare shoulder lightly. "And you need a little break from all those computers once in a while. We can enjoy ourselves and still get the job done." he says quietly, brushing another light kiss against Q's neck softly.

Knowing that he can't get away, Q still shifts away from the kiss on his neck slightly. Ok, so maybe he's being a little petulant, but he really was very angry with Bond, and he doesn't want the agent thinking he can just get away with something if he's a little charming afterwards. "I am surprised you aren't going to try and keep me secluded in this bungalow. Should I be grateful that you're allowing me out?" he asks in a still annoyed tone.

For some reason this makes James chuckle, much as a kitten might if it hisses and bares its claws. He's always been a cat person. "I did apologize, Q. Do need to say it again? I'm sorry." he says quietly, placing another soft kiss on the shoulder in front of him. "Didn't you know double-oh's don't play well with others in the field? I don't think it will be a hardship, pretending to be your husband, however.. " He says with a little smirk as he watches the younger man. "Will you be coming in soon?" he asks softly, allowing himself to nuzzle into Q's wet hair for a moment.

Unable to stay angry at the agent, though very much trying, Q sighs a little. "I'll be here for a bit longer, I do enjoy a bit of exercise now and then.." He says before he finally is able to move away from Bond, diving under and coming up a few feet away, coughing a little for a few moments.

Concerned, James frowns a little. "Alright, but there is a storm coming in." He says, shaking his head a little as he hears the cough, but assuming that perhaps he just got some water in his lungs. Finally, he moves back and slips out of the water, heading back upstairs, taking a quick shower to get all the salt off before he settles down with his laptop to go over the information they know, but also checking out the activities.

When Q comes up, the clouds are rolling in quickly, thunder being heard in the distance. Q is shivering a little from being in the cooler water a little too long. "Going to take a shower." he mumbles on his way through. A quick shower later, he's wearing a light crew-neck sweater with long sleeves, and a comfortable pair of trousers, toweling his hair dry and having glasses on now instead of his contacts, eyes a little red from the sea water and then messing with the contacts. "Anything interesting?" he asks as he sits down on the couch near, but not beside, Bond.

Looking up when the younger man comes out of the bedroom, Bond smirks a little. "Ah, I'm disappointed, the glasses came back.." he says quietly with a little chuckle, then he says, "Well, there are water sports of course, jet skis, boat tours, surfing.." He says quietly.

Q perks up a little. "Surfing? Can you rent a board?" he asks, sounding rather intrigued by that as he scoots closer to look over Bond's shoulder at the laptop screen.

A little surprised both at Q's sudden movement and his interest in surfing, James glances over at Q for a moment. "It appears you can." he says as he brings up the proper page. "Don't tell me you surf." He says with a tone of disbelief as he looks at him.

Glancing at Bond out of the corner of his eye, Q snorts a little. "I did have a life before MI6, James." he points out, before he glances down at his hand for a few moments.

"Bloody hell, I forgot the ring."

* * *

**Long chapter! I just couldn't find a good way to end it. Hope you all enjoy, even if I prattled on a bit longer than expected. Things are moving along well for them, I hope you all enjoy this, it's ridiculously fun to write, I have to admit.**

**Please let me know what you think, and enjoy!**


	8. Chapter 8

"What?" James asks in surprise at the sudden change of topic. "Where did you leave it?" he asks, tsking softly. "You had better not have lost it, especially after all your talks about me losing or destroying tech." he points out with a little smirk as he watches the other man.

Giving Bond an irritated look, Q gets up. "I just took it off before I got into the shower, Bond. Don't get too excited." he says as he gets up and wanders back into the bathroom. "It looks like our suitcases exploded in the bedroom." he notes as he comes back out, sliding the ring back onto his finger.

Leaning back on the couch a little, arms spread out along the back of it, James watches Q. "Leave it. It fits with our cover. If any maid comes in, it'll look like we ripped eachother's clothes off." he says with a smirk, looking over the younger man, finally reaching out to take Q's left hand when he gets closer, leaning over to kiss his knuckles near the ring. "Much better. I think I'm getting used to wearing mine. That's a scary thought." he says as he looks at the ring on his own finger. He's getting quite used to the ring, but he's also quickly getting used to being able to be near his Quartermaster, more relaxed than he's been in months, despite being on a mission. There is something soothing about Q's presence, he's noticed, especially when the technological genius is a little more open, like he's gotten used to the double-oh being around so he forgets to put up all his shields.

Q nods a little as he looks down at his hand, not even reacting to the kiss, as if it's not even important enough to register as shocking anymore. "Mmm. Me, too. I always thought a ring would be irritating, interfere with my typing, but these are made surprisingly well." he admits as he looks at them, sighing. "There's no tellie." he notices, grumbling a little. "They can't honestly expect people to shag for every hour of the day." Sitting back down on the couch, he leans forward to grab up his laptop again, relaxing back with his feet up on the coffee table.

"I don't know, maybe we should see if that's possible." Bond offers, waggling his eyebrows at Q, grinning a little as he causes a blush to come over those pale cheeks. Chuckling a little, he stretches, then yawns. "You never answered my question, earlier. Do you prefer one side of the bed to the other? You might have gotten quite a bit of sleep on the plane, but I got hardly anything, watching over you." he says with a little smirk.

With another slight blush, Q focuses on his computer screen. "Mmm. Left side of the bed. I tend to sleep on my side or my back." He explains with a little shrug of his shoulders, not looking away from the computer screen. "Just make sure there's nothing I can trip over in the dark, please." He says quietly, glancing up when he hears the thunder get closer, the pitter-patter of a sprinkling of rain starting.

James nods a little, slowly getting up. "Good. The right side of the bed is closer to the door, I was going to insist on taking that side anyway." He says quietly, wanting to make sure that he's between the door and the younger man, just in case.

Giving a little sigh, Q shakes his head good-naturedly. "You really are a throwback, Bond." he says quietly, though there's more affection to his tone than any sort of scolding. Still, he keeps his eyes on his screen, refusing to look at the double-oh and get distracted.

"James, Q. You are supposed to be calling me James." The agent reminds his quartermaster, smiling a little, turning and leaning down, hooking a finger under Q's chin to tilt his head up. "Goodnight, Q." he says softly before placing a chaste kiss on the brunette's lips, straightening afterward and turning to head into the bedroom, stripping off his shirt as he goes.

For a few moments after the kiss, Q just stares after James, admiring him. It's unsettling how easily he's getting comfortable with the agent. He really should be more careful and not allow the older man to get under his skin, that's a dangerous road. One that would no doubt be fun and enjoyable while it lasted, but it would be too easy to go careening off the cliffs. Still, no reason why he can't enjoy himself a little bit, while they're on this mission, right? He smiles to himself as he turns his attention back to the laptop in front of him, getting some coding work done, the rain outside eventually turning into a downpour that makes Q put his laptop aside and walk over to the balcony to look out, watching the sheets of rain coming down over the darkened waters. For appearance's sake, he takes out a digital camera and takes a few pictures of the view, before he goes and locks up the front door, then he returns to his laptop, doing a bit more work before shutting everything down to try and get some sleep.

When the lights are all off, Q smiles as he looks around, going into the bedroom. It's warm enough that he decides to sleep in just his boxers, getting a glass of water from the bathroom. After downing half of it, he has a little coughing fit that leaves him short of breath for a few moments. He sighs, shaking his head to clear it. Swallowing water is better than inhaling it, he reminds himself. After refilling the water, he walks into the bedroom, seeing Bond sprawled out on the bed, surprisingly almost fully on his stomach. Also in only his boxers. No surprise there. Not that Q can see much in the dark, and the light sheet he has draped over himself. With a little smile, the young man shakes his head for a few moments, putting his water down on the side table before he slips under the covers, finally removing his glasses and putting them on the end table, sighing a little as he tries to get comfortable on his side.

Unfortunately sleep doesn't come right away and he ends up tossing and turning a little, until Bond shifts in his sleep and throws and arm over him, as if to keep Q from moving anymore. Not able to keep the blush from his face, he looks at James in the dark but determines that the double-oh really is asleep. Q lets out a little sigh, pinned down by the other man's arm, he tries to relax, shifting enough to get comfortable, before creeping his hand across the bed to touch his index finger lightly to Bond's stubbled jaw. He allows himself that small indulgence, then withdraws his hand and gets comfortable, more easily falling asleep knowing that James' steady presence is there beside him, and listening to the heavy rain on the roof.

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**Two chapters in one day, because this scene wouldn't get out of my brain. Now that it is, I am finally off to sleep.**

**Enjoy, everyone, and please let me know what you think, Reviews/comments are always welcome!**


	9. Chapter 9

The next morning comes without any fanfare. Things like jet lag and the stress of changing time zones doesn't bother Bond. He's long ago learned to get sleep when he can, his body knowing how much sleep it needs and when it's gotten that much, he wakes up. This morning, that is precisely what happens, but he doesn't open his eyes quite yet, because he feels something rather unusual. He went to bed alone, but now he finds himself with a warm body close to him. Taking a deep breath, Bond confirms that it is his own quartermaster that has ended up in his arms. From the feel of it, he's ended up with one arm under the pillows and under Q's head, the other arm around the younger man's waist Finally, James allows himself to open his eyes, smiling a little as he sees those mussed curls and the graceful arch of Q's neck, eyes traveling down to that bare shoulder.

Slowly, James tilts his head forward and sighs a little across Q's sleep-warmed skin and he takes another deep breath, before he presses his face into his hair. He's always had a thing for brunettes, he has to admit, and that makes him smile a little before he lowers his head and kisses the back of his quartermaster's neck softly. He stills quickly when he feels Q move, but fortunately apparently all the sleeping man wants to do is change positions.

Q shifts a little, and then slowly rolls over so that he's facing James, snuggling in closer to the warm body. The sleeping man nuzzles his face into the crook of James' neck and shoulder while at first his arms remain between the two, then apparently he becomes unsatisfied with that position, one arm slipping around Bond, and one bare knee nudging its way between the other man's, tangling their legs together.

Quite pleased with this new position, James tightens his hold on Q and he hmms softly. This of course provides him some time to think, though whether or not that's a good thing it's hard to tell. He considers how easily he could get used to this. It's so often he wakes in a cold, empty bed, alone in some foreign country. It would be nice, when he's in London, to have someone to wake up to. For that matter it would be nice to have someone to motivate him to go back to London in the first place. Q already does that to a point, if only so that James can see the frustrated expression on the quartermaster's face. The thought of that expression makes James smile, and he sighs quietly as he enjoys the quiet of the early morning, listening to the waves.

The silence doesn't last long though, and Q finally starts to wake up, finding himself warm, maybe a touch too warm, but comfortable. It's been a while since he woke up feeling so content. But he's not one for being too sleepy normally, his mind kicking into high gear almost immediately, or at least to middle gear until he has his first cup of Earl Grey. So he realizes where he is and who he's with, lightly nuzzling into the warm skin in front of him, rubbing his cheek slightly against the much more impressive stubble of the other man's cheek. Q can never grow a proper beard, it always looks somewhat pathetic, his facial hair not one to grow very fast, unlike Bond's, it seems. But he finds it a little enjoyable. He knows the agent is awake, but he can't seem to help himself, nuzzling lightly again, and even going so far as to place a soft kiss against Bond's neck. He hasn't thought about putting all his armor back on after being so vulnerable from sleep.

"Good morning." James says with a small chuckle as he tightens his hold on the thin form of his quartermaster, turning his head slightly to place a soft kiss against the man's head, fingers trailing down Q's bare back slowly.

Humming in pleasure, Q sighs a little. "Good morning, James.." he says quietly, his voice a little rough from disuse overnight, so he clears his throat a little, nestling close to James for a few moments before reality starts to set in, and he frowns, realizing that this is not the sort of thing he really should be doing, or letting himself do. He can't let himself get close to Bond, he knows where it's going to end up, and it's just going to end up in him getting hurt, or at least that's what he supposes. Without trying to draw attention to the fact that they were rather intimately snuggling, Q breaks away from James' arms, rolling onto his back and stretching, squinting up at the ceiling before rubbing his eyes a little, rolling to put his back to the agent as he reaches for his glasses, finally sitting up with his glass of water, knees drawn up a little, and he rests his arms on them slowly.

Disappointed, James rolls onto his back and puts his hands behind his head. "I think we should eat breakfast in the main building this morning, the restaurant there looked nice." He offers as he looks at Q. "Mmm. We are going to run into a problem, though, I can see that right now." he says as he looks over the bare back of Q, reaching out and running his fingers down that pale expanse of skin presented to him.

"James, stop that." Q scolds, arching his back a little in surprise at the touch, shivering lightly. "What is this so-called problem, then?" He asks, finishing his glass of water and putting the glass back on his bedside before he looks over at the agent who is laying about rather indolently.

After the objection, Bond is fairly sure he doesn't want to stop that, but he doesn't push it for the moment. "You do not look like you were shagged into the mattress last night." he observes thoughtfully as he looks the young man over again, one arm still behind his head, the other resting over his stomach. "Not a mark on you.. and I can assure you, I'm a possessive man. I'm sure I would have left a mark, probably several." He says with a small chuckle, sitting up a little to trail his fingers along Q's neck and shoulder lightly.

A small shiver goes through Q's frame at that, and he shifts away from the touch. He gives James a sharp look. "I haven't been shagged into the mattress, so that will explain why I don't look like it." he says as he watches the agent carefully. "And who says I would let you put any marks on me?" he asks with a skeptically arched eyebrow.

James chuckles a little. "I don't think you would be in any right mind to object.. I'm not saying I would leave anything too obvious, I wouldn't want you to be cross with me.. but your skin is too delectable." He says quietly, sitting up fully and moving closer to Q, looking into his eyes, slipping one hand up to cup the brunette's jaw before he leans in to give him a tender, but sensual kiss, lips finally moving down along his jaw and neck slowly, unable to help himself. And, of course, it really would help their cover if Q looked even a little like he had a proper honeymoon night.

It's so much easier to be strong when within the cold walls of MI6, with his computers and his staff reminding Q of his place and his responsibilities, and all of the reasons why he should not be falling for a double-oh, any double-oh, much less the infamous commitment-phobic James Bond. Of course, here, away from all of that where it's just the two of them in a very romantic setting, sharing a bed, a room, spending more time together than they ever have before, it's easier to forget all of that and all the reasons. It really does seem to have a magical effect, and Q finds himself leaning into the kiss, closing his eyes and tilting his head. It's been a long time since he's had a proper boyfriend, or even a good shag, much longer than he'd care to admit, so the attention from the man that he's watched from afar for months now, is a welcome change. So even when the agent's lips move down his neck to his shoulder, and he starts to do some very wonderful things with his tongue and lips, and just a hint of teeth, Q doesn't object, he can only gasp and slide his hand into the blonde's hair gently.

And finally, just when it's starting to edge on painful, those wonderfully talented lips return to Q's, and he can't help the small moan that escapes his lips as they kiss, a little shocked when he's abruptly released, finding Bond looking at him closely.

"You can have the shower first, Q.." James says quietly, having left a very good-sized love bite that is already starting to turn a dark purple. He grins a little at the somewhat dazed expression on Q's face, but he's not about to push his luck and have the young man hate him later on. Slowly, he reaches out to cup Q's cheek for a moment. "Go on." He says as he nods toward the bathroom, dropping his hand away from the brunette's face before he turns away to get up, stretching slowly.

Blinking a few times, Q stares at James, scrambling up before he turns too bright of a shade of red, hurrying into the bathroom to try and calm himself down, mentally cursing himself as he sees the mark, right at a spot where he could hide it with the right shirt, but if he wants to be comfortable at all on this vacation, part of the love bite will be seen at all times, in all likelihood. And now he's a little annoyed he let himself be overwhelmed by the agent. "Bloody double-ohs." he grumbles before he takes a very long shower, wishing he could run the hot water out and force the blonde to take a cold shower but he's pretty sure that's impossible.

While Q is in the shower, Bond looks out over the ocean and smiles a little, feeling smug that he put his mark on his boffin. Slowly, he looks down at the ring on his finger, rubbing his thumb against the simple gold band. Of course, he doesn't have much time to think on that as he hears his mobile ringing, quickly retrieving it, walking back to the balcony. "Bond."

"007, good to hear from you, how is the mission proceeding?" Tanner's voice comes over the line, sounding as cool and professional as always.

"Just getting settled in. I'll give the boffin this, he's a better actor than I suspected. Our cover is solid." Bond says in a professional tone as he glances back at the bedroom, smirking a little for a moment before he looks out at the ocean.

"Good." Tanner's voice sounds somewhat strained though. "We have some new intelligence. Your target is arriving this afternoon. We'll have to step up our time table, you won't have as much time for gathering information. You'll have to get in by tomorrow afternoon. I've sent you Garcia's new schedule." Although to anyone else he sounds strictly professional, to Bond, he sounds worried.

"What are you not telling me, Tanner?" He asks, looking over at where Q is still in the shower, hearing the water turn off, hoping that he still has a bit of time before the young man comes out.

"Be careful with this one, James. Something seems off about it. Have Q look over everything carefully before you rush in." Tanner warns, not sounding entirely comfortable.

"You worry too much, Tanner. Q and I are here together, what can go wrong?" James jokes, trying for his usual levity but this has him a little concerned, that their target would change his plans so quickly and suddenly, it makes him unpredictable.

"That's exactly what I'm worried about. Try not to blow anything up, Bond." Tanner says in a droll tone before he hangs up.

Just about the time that Bond is lowering his phone and turning it off, Q comes out still rubbing his hair dry a little with a smaller towel, dressed in a light pair of pants and a button-up shirt that is undone still at the moment, freshly shaved but still wearing his glasses. "Who was that?" he asks curiously with a small frown.

Turning a little with a small smirk as James looks over at the other man. "Tanner. Garcia is checking in this afternoon. We're going to have to complete the job by tomorrow." He explains, adding. "Tanner's sent us the new itinerary for him. He wants you to look over all the information again before we do anything." The agent says as he watches Q, back down to business unfortunately, "Let me shower, and we can put a plan together." he says with a small nod of his head as he looks at Q, sighing a little, "I really hope your contacts will make another appearance, it would be a stupid mistake if our mission was ruined because your glasses got knocked off." He reminds the younger man before moving past him to the bathroom in order to get his own hot shower, shaving afterwards to make himself presentable.

Q sighs a little as he lowers his towel to let it rest over his shoulder, pulling out a brush from his pocket to run it through his unruly hair, finally settling down on the couch with his laptop, pulling up the information that Tanner sent him to start figuring out when the best time to get near the laptop would be. He does give a small sigh of regret, putting his hand over the mark on his shoulder.

"Well, I guess the honeymoon is over."

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**Don't worry, the honeymoon isn't quite over, I have plenty more planned! :D**

**This chapter ended up being a bit longer as well, though I am really happy with it. I hope everyone's enjoying it. I wonder if I might have to up the rating on the story, though. I guess it depends on what happens in the next few chapters.**

**Thank you to everyone who's reviewed so far, I love to hear what you guys think, and to know if anyone is enjoying this or if I'm just writing it for my own amusement. :)**

**Please let me know what you think!**


	10. Chapter 10

Once Bond is out of the shower, the two sit down, side-by-side on the couch and start going over the information, Q giving a briefing the same as he might any other time, giving Bond the information that he needs. Together, they make a plan, though Q has to argue some points rather fervently.

Eventually, they make it out of their bungalow, the late start not unusual for anyone at the resort, much less honeymooners. Q musses his hair up a bit to make it look like they might have had a quick shag in the morning. As they walk toward the main building and the restaurant, Bond takes Q's hand, using it to pull the younger man closer and then putting his arm around him, opening the door for the brunette which earns him an odd look, to which he just grins charmingly.

Since it's already noon, they don't have to wait long until their targets arrive. "There they are." James says as he finishes his juice, glancing at the door where a stunning blonde with a model's body and a smile lights up the room, along with a larger, bulky man who looks like he is a body builder of some sort, having an intimidating air about him, though he does truly seem to care for his wife, who is draped off his arm. But she's obviously the sort to appreciate male attention, just the type that James is good at getting close to.

"Wonderful, now we just have to wait for him to leave, then you can turn on your charm." Q says dryly as he looks at his 'husband', not very impressed with this plan. He has talked Bond through a dozen missions, a great many of them having to do with the agent flirting with or seducing someone, but he's never had to witness it first hand, and especially not under these circumstances when he was just starting to think there might be something there between him and Bond. Not that he can say anything out loud because this is a mission, and he cannot let his personal feelings jeopardize it.

It becomes obvious that there are at least two bodyguards with the couple, but all the same they don't have to wait long until Garcia leaves his new wife at the bar, appearing to be going down toward the boats, probably to arrange some tour, taking one bodyguard with him and leaving the other to watch over the wife from a distance. Discreetly, James gets up, giving Q a quick kiss, making it clear to everyone in the room who he is there with before he says, "I'll get us something a bit stronger, hm?" He says with a grin, before he heads over to the bar. It's not long before he's struck up a conversation with the beautiful blonde bombshell, glancing over at the younger man often, as if to make sure that he hasn't wandered off or is getting himself into trouble.

When a rather attractive waiter comes by, Q takes this opportunity to put the second part of the plan into action, giving the man a friendly smile. Before they left, he put his contacts in, so he looks even younger than he is, closer to the age of the waiter. He starts asking about the different activities, completely harmless conversation, but from the outside it definitely looks like he's flirting with the waiter.

When Bond looks over and sees Q pretending to flirt with the waiter, he can't help the honest possessiveness and jealousy that he feels, and he frowns, before he glances at his conversational companion. "Excuse me for a moment." He says before he walks over toward Q with a disapproving expression on his face. "Quentin." He says, glaring at the waiter until he scuttles again. "We are on our /honeymoon/." he says in a slightly more harsh tone, seeming to be trying to keep his voice down, but it easily carries.

Blinking in surprise up at the older man, Q looks perfectly confused. "Yes, we are, James. Perfectly sound argument. What's this about?" he asks with a little smile, seeming amused before he reaches out for the older man's hand.

But James is having none of that, he pulls his hand away from Q, frowning a little. "It is about you, flirting with the waiter when we are on our honeymoon. I thought we talked about this." he says, injecting a little hurt into his tone.

Q frowns a little as he looks up at the older man. "I was not flirting." He says, suddenly standing up so as not to be in such a position where the agent can tower over him, his chair grinding back noisily. "We did talk about this. We also talked about your ridiculous tendency toward unfounded jealousy. I was asking him what he would recommend for us to do today. That's all. As a local and an employee, I thought he might be able to give us some insight." He points out, a little hurt now, voice rising slightly and more easily heard.

Reaching out for a moment, James grasps Q's arm, frowning at him a little. "It's not unfounded when you are flirting with strangers." he says in a frustrated tone. And yeah, some of this is real jealousy at the thought of Q turning his charms toward anyone else, and that scares the hell out of him that he could feel jealous about someone he really has no claim to.

Jerking his arm back and out of the older man's grasp, Q frowns. "I don't want to hear you say another word, James. I was merely trying to find out something for us to do today. If anyone should be concerned about fidelity here it's me. Last night you claim how much you love me and today YOU are the one flirting with the first attractive woman who comes through the door! Are you bored already, less than a week into our marriage? You know I had doubts, considering your track record. You know how long it took me to accept that you could care for me, considering I'm not exactly your typical type, and then you go and pull this shit?!" he says, getting louder, breathing a bit heavier with his all-too-real fears, lending a reality to this charade. "You have no basis for your accusations, I barely dated before you. You, you flirted with anything, especially if it came with a pair of breasts and now you're back at it again!" he is definitely yelling now and he can't seem to care.

When James reaches for him again with a surprised and concerned look on his face, Q jerks away and stumbles back a step. "No. No, go back to the bar and your flirting, it's obvious that' where you really want to be." He's shocked to feel real tears pricking his eyes, making him blink rapidly. "I'm going back to our room, don't bother following, you aren't welcome right now." He says before he turns to walk out, heading back to their bungalow, but only to gather the gun he brought for this mission, and a few other things he might need, including an earwig which will connect him to Bond. But it takes him a few minutes to settle his nervous and recover himself, rubbing at his eyes and firmly reminding himself that this is all pretend.

Back at the restaurant, Garcia returned in time to see the end of the argument, arching an eyebrow. "Trouble in paradise?" He asks pleasantly with a sympathetic chuckle as he walks back over to his wife.

James sighs a little as he watches Q go, looking a little lost for a moment before he looks over at Garcia, nodding a little. "Yes, I let my jealousy get the better of me, and it seems I've made a proper mess of my honeymoon." He says sadly as he walks over to the bar where the two are, "I am going to have to think of a proper way to grovel, but for now he needs some time to cool off." He says as he looks down at the ring on his finger. He already has his earwig in and on the right frequency, nervously waiting for some word from Q.

Garcia chuckles a little. "Ah, but it is good to have that fire, that passion. And making up is half the fun of a fight!" He says crudely with a small laugh. He at least seems tolerant of a married, homosexual couple, even if he is an arms dealer.

"I've got what I need, I'm heading to Garcia's room now." Q's voice finally comes over the earwig, cool and steady as it ever is when he is safely ensconced in Q-branch, where he can be omniscient.

James just smiles a little at Garcia, nodding quietly. "I don't think I'll have the chance to make up until I grovel properly." he says with a small shake of his head. "I suppose I should find something to do for the next few hours, and find a proper present." He says, looking at the drinks the barman brought over, and he picks up his, drinking half of it in one go before he shakes his head, "Or I could just get bloody blink drunk." He mutters, trying not to sound relieved when that cool voice is in his ear again.

"Don't you dare, Bond." Q says as he sneaks over to Garcia's bungalow. "I'm glad that Garcia's room is rather isolated as well. No one seems to be around. I'm approaching from the water like we discussed." The young man says softly, having a small boat they acquired that is very quiet. He ties it up at the same sort of lower-level dock that they have in their own place, pulling out his gun. "Although now that I'm here, I wouldn't mind a little backup. Probably best if you stay there, though, and keep him occupied." He notes quietly as he sneaks up the stairs, gun out first. He idly listens to the other three chatting on the other end of the comm as he slips into the bungalow, searching around until he finds the laptop and goes to work.

Between the chatter in the earpiece and his own focus on what he's doing, Q doesn't notice that he's no longer alone, until it's too late, and he both sees and feels the cool metal of a gun not too far from his head, and the sharp click as it's cocked.

"Bugger."

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**Ahem. I promise, I am working on the next part to this cliffhangar right now! Everything will be fine. No need for the pitchforks, or torches, or anything...**

**Enjoy!**

**Reviews/comments welcome!**


	11. Chapter 11

James very narrowly avoids yelling something inappropriate out, instead he just excuses himself from his companions, saying he needs to find something to woo his husband with. He turns and casually heads out, then hisses, "What the bloody hell was that?" And frowns when he doesn't get a response. Thankfully he at least gets out of sight before he breaks into a dead run, "Q! Q, answer me, what's going on?" He demands into his earpiece, going into full on panic mode.

"I'm sorry, James.." Q's voice finally comes through, quietly. There's a sound of a scuffle, and then two gunshots before the line goes dead.

Heart pounding, James starts running faster, cursing mentally. He never should have let the boffin go off on his own, it was too dangerous and they both knew it, but with the time table stepped up they didn't have much of a choice. When the bungalow comes into view, James is hardly in his right mind, and he busts down the door with a swift kick.

Q is standing inside, a little surprised, having a gun trained on the body in front of him, and he automatically swings one hand around, with the gun, aiming it at the new intruder, and coming just shy of firing it again, staring in surprise. "James, I could have shot you, you bloody idiot!" He says in a harsh tone, lowering the gun slowly, his slightly trembling hand the only indication of the adrenaline coursing through the younger man's system.

Shocked and relieved, Bond moves over and grabs the gun from the younger man, tucking it into his belt before he puts his hands on either side of Q's face. "I thought you were shot." He whispers before pulling him close and giving him a desperate, passionate kiss.

Responding for a few moments with one hand clinging to Bond's shirt, Q finally pushes the older man away. "I have work to do, and you have cleanup to do. This is your area." He points out as he motions toward the body before he moves to sit back down at the computer. "He's Russian, or at least that's what he was speaking. I can leave just enough of a trail behind on this computer that an analyst will think it was the Russians trying to get in and throw any suspicion off of us." He says in a calm, professional tone.

"Are you alright, Q?" James asks as he starts to wrap up the corpse, dumping it in the water, knowing that sharks will take care of it soon enough, especially since the tide is going out and that will drag the body out to sea. He collects any brass, tossing the Russian's gun into the water as well.

Q glances up at James briefly. "Yes, quite fine, 007." He says, obviously having shut down a little, fingers flying over the keyboard, plugging a USB drive into the side before he goes back to work. He doesn't take long, finishing up quickly before he stands, "I suggest we at least make it look like a break in." He says, leaving the laptop open, the USB drive being tucked back into his pocket. For a moment, he starts coughing, leaning over on his knees and pressing a hand against his chest.

And now Bond is worried, tossing the room to make it look like it was a break-in, before he grabs Q's arm. "You are not ok." He says with a small frown, waiting until the man is finished coughing before pulling him down to the boat, heading back off to their bungalow. Thankfully the boat doesn't look out of place, it looks like something the resort provides, so them returning to the bungalow in one doesn't seem suspicious. James leads Q back up, frowning as he looks at him. "Are you sure you're alright? You did just kill a man." he points out warily, seemingly waiting for the fallout.

Q nods as he glances at Bond. "Quite alright." he reassures, then he sighs, letting out a light cough or two before going to the little bar setup and grabbing a bottle of water before he returns to his laptop. "Our mission seems to be accomplished. I'll email it to Tanner." he offers as he glances up at the agent.

Not quite sure what to do and feeling a little out of place, Bond goes to put Q's gun back in its case, before he walks back out into the main room. "I'll go get us a few things from the shop. For goodness' sake, stay here and lock the bloody door." he says quietly as he walks over, resting his hand on Q's shoulder and leaning over to kiss the top of his head. "I almost lost you once, and I'm not as young as I used to be. It would be rather embarrassing if you managed to give me a heart attack. Not a very good end for a double-oh." he says with amusement.

While he doesn't object to the kiss, Q still snorts a little. "You take better care of your body than that, James, you are in excellent shape and you do not eat enough fatty foods to clog your arteries. I very much doubt that I could give you a heart attack." He says in the same cold tone, though at least he's back to calling the agent 'James'.

Chuckling a little, Bond nods a little, kissing the top of his head again. "Trust you to know that." He says playfully before he smiles. "I'll be back soon." He says as he looks at Q, afraid the young man will disappear. Finally, he forces himself to turn and walk out, back toward the main building where there are some shops, including a small convenience store type of thing where he can get some fruits, cheese, bread, the sorts of things that don't necessarily need refrigeration. He can't help it, he doesn't plan to let Q out of his sight for the rest of the day, at least until he can examine just how scared he was when he heard those gunshots.

When he returns to the bungalow, he frowns a little since he doesn't see the young man at first, and that of course worries him. But, he tells himself, there are more places than just the main living area, so he checks the lower 'dock' area before coming back up. "Q?" He calls, looking in the bedroom. Only then does he start panicking a little when he doesn't see the man. Finally, he pushes the bathroom door open, letting out a breath of relief when he sees that mop of hair.

Curled up in the small space between the toilet and the tub, Q has his knees pulled up to his chest and his arms around his knees, head resting on his knees. His whole frame is trembling, and from what can be seen, he's breathing quickly. "Please.. just leave me be, Bond." He says, trying to retain his detached tones, but it comes out as more of a plea, voice breaking a little.

This is not the first time Bond's seen this sort of reaction, a delayed shock to killing someone. The first kill is always the hardest, he knows that from experience. He had merely hoped to spare the young man from ever finding that out. Sighing a little, James shakes his head and reaches out, grasping Q's upper arms and hauling him up enough until he can get his other hand under the smaller man's knees, picking him up bridal style to silently carry him back into the bedroom, laying him on the bed before climbing in behind him. Gently, he pulls Q up and between his legs to rest against his chest, encircling his smaller form with both arms, legs resting on either side of Q's. "The last thing you need right now is to be alone, Q. Trust me. You don't want to end up like me." he says with a sad smile, chin resting on the younger man's shoulder as he holds him.

Q shudders a little, but he doesn't object. At first he just rests against the older man, then finally he shifts, turning so that he's facing the agent, slipping arms around him and up under his shirt, nuzzling into his neck to try and burrow closer to his body, not wanting to think about the fight. His training certainly kicked in at least, and he did prove that he could take care of himself, but not exactly how he wanted to. "I told you I was perfectly capable." He says softly in a weak voice, squirming a little to tighten his hold on James.

Not objecting to the more intimate embrace, James leans back a little, getting himself more comfortable as he continues to hold Q. "I just wish you didn't have to prove it in this way, Q." he says quietly as he holds the younger man, rubbing his back firmly and slowly. He's not used to giving comfort, but he knows the one thing that Q probably needs right now is just to be close to someone, given the way that he seems to be trying to get under James' skin. "You did what you had to do, Q." he says quietly, placing a few soft kisses against his head gently.

Nodding quietly against Bond's neck, Q takes a slow, deep breath. "I just.. need to stay here for a while, I think. If that would be alright with you." he says quietly, sounding very young and vulnerable at the moment. "And if you tell anyone about this, you will go on your next mission with a squirt gun." he grumbles quietly.

James smiles a little as he holds the younger man, rubbing his back slowly, which turns into more of a caress. Remembering something from the plane, he moves one hand up into Q's hair and starts to stroke through it slowly, rubbing his fingertips against the younger man's scalp in a gentle massage before just carding his hands through the brunette's hair.

"I wouldn't dream of it, Q."

* * *

**Woohoo, successful mission! Maybe. Hopefully. But there is more to come!**

**I hope you all enjoy, reviews/comments welcome!**


	12. Chapter 12

Thinking over everything that's happened that day and the fact that their mission is technically finished after just a day of them being there, James finally comes to a conclusion that makes him smile. "Well. We certainly can't leave right away, that would be very suspicious. We just got here afterall. Technically our flight doesn't leave until the end of the week." he says quietly as he continues to pet his boffin's hair, and rub his back a little. "You could certainly use a few more days off. And we have such a wonderful cover set up for us..." he says slowly with a little smile, fairly sure that his genius will figure out where he's going with this.

"Are you suggesting that we remain here, on vacation, and what, continue the charade of a married couple?" Q asks skeptically, lifting his head for the first time from Bond's shoulder to look into his eyes for a few moments.

James smiles a little as he looks into the young man's eyes, stroking his cheek softly for a few moments. "Yes, that is exactly what I'm suggesting." he says as he watches Q. "It's not like we're dropping off the radar. They all know where we are." He persuades with a little smile. "The island looks beautiful, it's pleasant here, good food... Christ, Q, it's a bloody sanctioned vacation, for crying out loud. And a paid vacation at that." He says with a little grin, stroking his hand through the young man's hair again.

Humming in pleasure, Q tilts his head back against James' hand, eyes closing for a moment before he sighs softly and opens his eyes to look at James. "Oh, alright.." he says with a little sigh and a shake of his head. "Bloody double-ohs..." he mutters with a small smile, lowering his head to rest it back on the agent's shoulder, his mind having been successfully diverted for the moment from the fact that he did kill someone earlier.

Chuckling a little and tightening his hold on the man in his arms, Bond sighs. "Blimey, I really do need to feed you up. Your minions should take better care of you." he scolds lightly, then he asks, "When was the last time you had a proper boyfriend?"

"Mmm.. interesting assumption there, James." Q notes quietly since the agent assumed that his preferences ran toward men. "You're quite right, of course. I prefer men. Always have. In fact, I've never dated a woman, for that matter." He says as he considers it, closing his eyes to enjoy the closeness with James. "It's been.. let's see.. A little over two years since I had a boyfriend." His tone ends up being soft and a little bit lonely, head tilting down and away from James so that his expression can't be read, eyes open and staring at the far wall, not entirely sure he's comfortable with where this is going.

Shaking his head a little, Bond lowers his head to kiss the top of Q's head, sighing a little into his hair. "Sounds lonely." he says softly, one hand moving up to rub the back of the boffin's neck, rubbing it gently and playing with the ends of his hair, enjoying touching the soft skin there.

Shifting uneasily for a moment, Q takes a deep breath. "It is. But I don't have time for a social life, my job at MI6 is far too important, and you can't start a relationship based on lies. My hours are not exactly conducive to a relationship anyway." He says before he shifts a little, moving one hand from beneath Bond's shirt to brace it on the man's abdomen, the other resting on the bed so he can push himself up and away from the agent, avoiding looking into those beautiful blue eyes.

Not letting the young man go too far just yet, Bond keeps his arms around the waist of the lanky genius as he sits up with him. "You know, there's no actual rule saying you can't date a coworker. Is there anyone at MI6 that strikes your fancy?" he asks with a cheeky grin, cupping Q's cheek to turn his head back toward him, leaning in and placing a light, tender kiss against his lips.

For a few minutes, Q can indulge himself and pretend that Bond might be giving him a hint, but then he remembers their 'fight' from earlier and how very true it could end up being, and that makes him pull back. "You should stop taking such liberties when there's no reason for it, James. Thank you for your.. comfort, but we should keep our relationship professional." he finally says the words, though they've been dancing around it for almost three days.

"Bullshit." James says bluntly, watching Q's eyes go wide in surprise. He smirks a little. "If you meant that, you would have been denying my advances a lot more vehemently before now. You're not disgusted by my touch. You enjoy it. And it's not just that you're lonely. I know the difference." he says with a smug little smile as he watches Q.

Not able to keep the slight blush from his cheeks, Q doesn't look at Bond. Instead, he pulls away, and moves off the bed. "Well it's well known that you're rather skilled in what you do, Bond. There's no reason I shouldn't enjoy it." he points out, running a hand through his hair. "I rarely say things that I don't mean." He adds, scrambling to try and get his walls back up as he realizes he let them crumble a little too far, for Bond to be able to see through him so easily. "Lets face it, you are not the relationship type, James, this is all a farce that we were forced into. We are here doing our jobs, nothing more. And when we return to London, we will go back to being just what we were before." He says simply, putting his back to James and not looking at him, taking a step toward the main room.

With fast movements honed from years of being a double-oh and generally keeping in very good shape, James is off the bed, grabbing Q's shoulder to spin him around and shove him back against the wall. "I will never be able to look at you the same, Q. You may be able to go back as we were, but I won't be able to. I won't be able to forget how you feel in my arms, how you respond to my kisses, the way you look first thing in the morning." He says softly, pressing his body into Q's gently to make sure the young man can't go anywhere. "Can you honestly say you can? You can forget the feel of my lips on yours, my body against yours?" He asks, then adds, "Look me in the eyes and tell me you can forget that, and I will back off, I will remain professional for the rest of our stay here." He offers as he watches the brunette closely.

It seems like it should be a simple thing to do what 007 requests, to look into those sky blue eyes and tell him that he can forget everything and go back to a professional relationship. But as Q opens his mouth to do just that, the words die on his lips, and he closes his mouth again, pressing it into a thin line as he continues to watch the agent in front of him. "Don't, James." He says with a small shake of his head, finally turning his head to the side and pointedly looking away from the agent. "Don't do this. Don't make me fall for you. Because it would be so bloody easy, and you... you're not the monogamous sort, James. While I could tolerate the sex because of missions, I'm not a fool. You won't give your heart to anyone, not again."

A little surprised and maybe a little hurt at how vulnerable the young man before him seems, because of him, James slowly releases him and takes a slight step back. If he's honest with himself, he knows that Q is right, he would have a hard time giving his heart to anyone, the pain of Vesper still there, even years later. In fact, Q is the first one he's even felt remotely close enough to, to consider entering a relationship with. And the fact that the boffin is so afraid of being betrayed hurts James, because that is the last thing he ever wants to do to Q. "Perhaps I never found the right person." He says, before he adds, "And I know you would never ask me to leave MI6. We need each other in the jobs we're good at." He says quietly as he watches Q. "You don't know me as well as you think, if you can't tell what's been happening between us for the past few months. All I ask is for you to give me the week. If, by the end of it, you don't think you can risk a relationship with me, then I will do my best to forget everything, and we can go back to a professional relationship." he offers as a bargain, fairly confident that he can get the boffin to open up in the next five days.

It's clear that Q is struggling with whether or not to accept that as he turns his head, still leaning against the wall, and looks into Bond's eyes for a few moments. But really, who is he kidding? He's been admiring James Bloody Bond for months now, in and out of the field, and he's had more than a few vivid dreams about him. And now the double-oh is offering five days with him. Slim shoulders sag a little as Q sighs when he watches James. "Fine." he finally agrees, nodding slowly. "But this does not mean that I am going to let you shag me any time soon, don't get any ideas." he says in a firm tone, glancing the agent over warily since he half-expects Bond to pounce on him now.

Pouncing is actually the opposite of what James has in mind, feeling rather proud of himself though. Instead, he steps back into Q's personal space, framing the younger man's face slowly before he leans in and gives him a light, sweet kiss. "I wouldn't dream of it, Q." he says softly in an affectionate tone, stroking the man's cheeks before he moves away slowly. "I don't know about you, but I'm hungry. I brought some things back from the shop.." he says, finally moving into the main sitting area, pulling things out of bags and arranging them on the small side bar area where there are some things such as a coffee pot and the mini-fridge that doubles as the bar.

Q takes a deep breath. "I think I'm actually going to go for a swim first.." He says as he walks over to where Bond is, reaching out to snag a pear, biting into it slowly and licking his lips. "Mmmm. It's hard to get good pears." he says with a little sigh before he goes to the bedroom, finding his swim trunks among their things and then he changes, coming out with a bottle of sunscreen. "Could you give us a hand?" He asks as he looks at Bond with a slightly arched eyebrow. "Last thing I need is to get a bloody sunburn out here."

"With pleasure." James says as he realizes what is being asked of him, and he moves around behind the now half-naked man, putting some of the sunscreen in his palm before he starts to spread it gently over Q's back and shoulders as the young man eats his pear. And since Q seems occupied, Bond kneels down and starts spreading sunscreen over the back of his legs, feeling the muscles jump in surprise. "Calm down, I'm just giving you a hand so you can finish your pear." He reassures. And indeed, his movements are quick and professional. Where he may have lingered a little on his back, he is quick and detached on his legs, standing after a few moments and holding the tube back out to Q.

Finishing his pear, Q merely nods a little to James. "Thank you, James." he says, tossing the pit of the pear away before he finishes putting the sun block on himself, squinting as he heads out onto the balcony, looking up at the sun before he heads down and dives smoothly into the water.

Bond watches Q go, sighing in frustration as he goes to get his phone, snatching it up. "This is why I turn my phone off, because none of you can bloody well leave me alone on a mission." He says in an annoyed tone as he goes to make himself some coffee, finding some tea bags and, surprisingly, a kettle, he starts heating up that water as well.

"Oh, aren't we touchy." Eve says with amusement in her voice. "I was just told to call and pass on M's regards. He says good job. Tanner says to stay put though, he won't be pulling you out yet, it would be too suspicious. But I'm sure you already knew that. What I really want to know is how things are going with Q. Did you grovel? Did he forgive you?"

"You are a bloody gossip, Miss Moneypenny. If you're such a friend of Q's, by the way, you really should make sure he eats better. He's all skin and bone!" He says as he pulls out a tiny bottle of scotch and opens it, pouring it into a provided tumbler.

A small laugh comes from the other end of the phone. "I am not his babysitter. So, you've seen him without clothes, then, hm? That sounds promising.. Sounds like you two have made up. I'm glad to hear it. Now maybe he can stop looking like a lovesick puppy whenever he's waiting for you to get back from a mission."

For a few moments James digests that, and then he chuckles a little. "thank you for that. By the way.. do you know if Q has any sort of.. lung conditions? Asthma or anything of the sort?" he asks, a little concerned about the cough that he's seen developing over the last few days.

"Not that I know of. There's nothing in his medical files to indicate that. Why, is something wrong?" Eve asks, sounding concerned now.

"No, no. Must just be the humidity here, he's not used to it. Had a bit of trouble breathing after swimming yesterday. But it seems to be gone now. I just wanted to make sure there wasn't anything I was missing. Our boffin's just not used to being outside his climate-controlled environment." James jokes with a little chuckle. "If that's all, I had better ring off and make sure I have something for him to eat when he gets finished swimming," he say with a little smirk. "And that is how I know he's all skin and bones, he seems to quite like swimming." He says in a scolding tone. "Honestly, Moneypenny, you have a dirty mind."

Eve sighs a little. "I am very disappointed in you, Bond." She says before she adds, "Give me a ring if you need anything, and have fun, your flight is still leaving at the same time, we'll let you know if anything changes." She says before she hangs up.

Bond shakes his head, but he prepares a cheese, bread and fruit tray, getting his coffee and Q's tea made before bringing it all out onto deck, heading down with a towel. He spots Q floating in the water not too far away and smiles fondly at the young man.

"Food's ready, and I made you tea."

* * *

**I am obsessed with this fic today, 3 chapters! I should really have been updating one of my Sherlock fics, but I just couldn't focus on them. Sigh. I might try and skip a day on this fic so I can update my others, and focus on them for a night. We'll see.**

**I hope you enjoy this so far, things should be getting a bit interesting now.**

**Please let me know what you think, reviews/comments welcome!**


	13. Chapter 13

Q looks up and over at James, smirking a little. "I didn't know you were capable of making a good cuppa." He says as he swims over to the edge of the deck, pulling himself up onto the wood before he stands slowly. "It's good that I worked up a bit of an appetite." he says with a bit of amusement.

Still standing there waiting for Q to get out of the water, Bond pulls out a towel he had been holding to wait for the young man to get out of the water, hooking it around the boffin's neck before using both sides to pull the young man close, leaning in to give him a kiss. "You enjoy the water, don't you?" he asks curiously with a little smirk.

Nodding a little, Q turns his head to the side, bringing a hand up as he coughs again, this one wracking his small frame, making him shake his head firmly afterwards. "Now.. you promised me a cuppa." He accuses as he looks at Bond.

Worried for his companion, James sighs a little. "Alright.. up you go." he says as he nudges the man up the stairs in front of him, mostly so he can admire the man's backside. When they get back into the main room, Bond presses the cup into Q's hands, then says, "Go. Change into something dry, and a bit warmer." He says in concern, then adds, "I've felt a storm coming in all day, it's not going to be like last night, we might have to batten down the hatches." he says quietly as he looks around.

"Yes, mother." Q says with amusement. "Honestly, James, if I didn't think you would actually take me up on the offer, I would ask if you wanted to dress me as well." he says with a little smirk, wandering into the bedroom to collect clothes and dry himself off, dressing in his comfy, loose pants he was wearing yesterday, and a soft t-shirt. He shivers a little, surprised that he's still a bit cool, and he digs around before he finds a hoodie that he brought and slips that on as well, sipping his tea as he comes back out, only to have a plate of food thrust at him as soon as he appears. "You are being pushy today, James." He says as he sits down on the couch to eat and sip his tea, glad that the plate has stuff he actually likes on it.

Nodding a little, James sighs as he walks over with his own plate, settling down close beside Q. "Q, you've been sneezing and coughing, you're cold even though it's probably 80 degrees in here. Face it, you're getting sick. I just want to see if we can head it off before it gets too bad." Quietly, he eats, enjoying the quiet time, before he leans over and turns on his computer. "Lets spend a good, old-fashioned evening watching movies. I think you would benefit from the rest. And I know you secretly like cuddling." he says playfully, smirking over at the young man, finishing his little meal before he starts loading up a movie website he subscribes to, because sometimes he just needs something to kill some time when he's on a mission and this always seemed like a good option.

For a few moments, Q just watches James and then he smiles. "Well, this is rather domestic." he says as he puts his feet up on the coffee table, then adds, "There's nothing wrong with liking a good cuddle. Just because I am a computer genius, or perhaps because of it, doesn't mean I don't appreciate being close to another human being. Unlike certain people in this room, I don't get the opportunity to get close to anyone often. Not that you seem to spare a lot of time cuddling. I was under the impression you weren't the sort to want someone clinging all over you." He says as he finishes his food, putting the plate aside onto the coffee table.

James arches an eyebrow. "I like cuddling, when it's with someone I care about." he says as he watches Q. "The women on missions, Q.. they mean nothing to me, you know that, don't you?" he asks as he reaches over to put an arm around Q's waist, dragging him close to his side.

Sighing a little, contentedly, Q rests his head on James' shoulder, giving in to his desires for once, before he sits up a little to select some action movie off of the screen of the agent's laptop, before he gets upon his knees on the couch to push James down until he's laying on his back, before he slips between the back of the couch and the double-oh's body to cuddle and watch the screen at the same time.

A storm starts moving in, true to what Bond predicted, as they cuddle and watch one movie, and then two. And while James doesn't say anything, he can feel the warmth of Q's skin through his clothes, knowing the younger man must be getting a slight fever, and as the night goes on, a small little cough starts to form, Q not even moving and he ends up coughing a little here or there simply from breathing. Midway through the second movie, the boffin can't even keep his eyes open, and James slowly sits up, picking the young man up. "Alright.. off to bed with you..." Carrying the younger man into the bedroom, he lays him down on the bed slowly and pulls the covers up over him, knowing that he needs to stay warm, even if he might find it uncomfortable.

"Stay.." Q says sleepily, grabbing at James' arm, having been quite comfortable against the other man.

Making small shushing noises at Q, James reaches out and removes the young man's hand from his arm, kissing the palm softly. "I'm just going to close up our room, in case the winds pick up.. take your sweatshirt off, get comfortable, I'll be right back.." he soothes, reaching out to brush the fringe away from the brunette's forehead.

Seeming satisfied with that, Q nods a little, stripping his sweatshirt off and tossing it aside before he nestles down under the covers, trying to keep his eyes open as he waits for James to get back, listening to him shut up the windows, lock doors and even shut the large doors that lead out onto the deck. Finally, he returns to bed, changing into some pajama pants and then sliding under the covers, reaching out to pull the young man closer against him. "Bloody hell, you're burning up." He mutters softly, kissing Q's soft hair before pulling him tight.

Q is a little uncomfortable, but he burrows up close to James, starting to feel the cold in his bones, but he places a soft kiss on the agent's neck, nuzzling into it. He's open and vulnerable, and he knows it, but he hopes James won't take advantage of that. "It would be.. so dangerous to love you, James." he whispers softly as he squirms around a little more until he gets comfortable, almost fully surrounded by the agent's arms and legs now. "You can't disappear. You can't just.. drop off without telling me where you went." he mumbles, swallowing a little, eyes closing sleepily. "Please don't abandon me, James.." He pleads before he drifts off to sleep.

Holding the boffin close against him, James lowers his head and places several soft kisses against Q's hair. "I won't, Q. I promise. Even if no one else knows where I am.. you will always know." He promises softly, worried as he feels how warm the other man is, just continuing to hold him and stroke his back, leaning down to whisper to the sleeping form of his quartermaster.

"I'm not perfect, Q. But don't give up on me."

* * *

**I almost skipped writing a chapter tonight because I just wasn't feeling it, certainly not as much as I did yesterday, but then I would have let myself down. So here is a chapter, not exactly how I wanted it to be, but it gets me to where I want to go. So I hope you all enjoy it!**

**Please, please let me know what you think!**


	14. Chapter 14

James can't tell the next morning if it truly is morning, without glancing at the clock. It's still dark outside, the rain is still lashing at the building and he can hear the surf pounding away at the beach. So the storm is still in full force. He looks down at the thing that woke him, Q whimpering and shifting restlessly in his sleep. And it's no wonder with how warm the young man is, definitely with a fever, and occasionally he'll start coughing which seems to halfway wake him up before he drifts back off.

Although he's loathe to wake him, they're both covered in sweat, and he figures that the younger man might appreciate a hot bath. Gently, he gives Q a little shake, brushing sweat-dampened hair away from his face. "Q, come on.. wake up.. you need something to drink and frankly we both need a bath." he says as he gets up out of bed slowly to start the bath running, bringing in a glass of juice for the brunette.

Having had weird dreams to begin with, it doesn't take much to wake Q, and he looks around blearily before he kicks off some of the covers, feeling extremely warm, and then strips off his sweaty shirt. Fumbling around, he finally finds his glasses and yawns a little. "Mmm.. 'M fine.." He mumbles but he accepts the juice, coughing again when he drinks it a little too fast. But once he started, he found that he was extremely thirsty. "It's too hot.. doesn't this place have air conditioning?" He grumbles as he finishes his juice at a more sedate pace.

"You've got a fever, Q." James says as he pulls the covers off the younger man, picking him up and carrying him to the bathroom, despite the weak protests his quartermaster puts up. Only when they're in the bathroom does he put Q back on his feet. "Sounds like there's a hefty storm out there. Might be why Garcia came early. Then again, it is the rainy season from what I read, probably why there aren't many guests." he tries to keep it conversational in order to keep the young man's mind occupied.

"Are you going to join me for a bath?" Q asks, sounding a bit pitiful but hopeful as well, weakly starting to push his pajama pants down over his slim hips, trying to step out of them without tripping, which means he has to grab onto something to hold him up, and that just happens to be Bond's bicep. Something he gives a small, appreciative squeeze.

James chuckles a little, and then he nods. "If you insist." he says, helping Q get completely naked and standing in the bath water before he strips down, grabs a cloth and then steps in behind Q, lowering them both down into the tub until the brunette is settled between Bond's legs and is sitting back against his chest. "There.. How's that?" he asks, one arm wrapped around the quartermaster's torso, while he starts stroking the cloth over his skin with the other, getting his neck, shoulders and arms, areas that are exposed above the water, keeping the cloth stroking over his skin in soothing movements.

Making a small sound of pleasure, Q settles back into the arms of his favorite double-oh. "If the others could see you now, being so domestic, James.." he says with a little smile. "They would never believe that the infamous 007 has been tamed, even for a short period of time.." he says quietly, still sounding a little out of it, but the juice and being upright has started to wake him up, even as coughing wracks his thin frame again.

Grinning a little, Bond rubs the wet cloth up Q's back and to the back of his neck, leaving it there for a few moments for the heat to soothe the brunette. A soft kiss is placed on the back of his head, and then Bond nods a little. "Don't worry, dear Quartermaster. It's all for you, and only you. You are the only one who can tame me." He reassures with a small smirk. "Keep talking, you know I love to hear your posh voice. Sometimes I annoy you just to get you to keep chatting away in my ear on missions sometimes, did you know that? Your voice is just too damned sexy, and it's fun to try and ruffle your feathers a bit." he says honestly, grinning again as he continue to lavish attention on the sick man in his arms.

Apparently deciding that the water is at an appropriate level, Q leans forward and shuts it off, which of course also lets James gently wash off his bath, making Q stay in his position leaning against his knees until he's pulled back against the double-oh's chest again. "I should have guessed that you would do something like that, you infuriating man." He grumbles, pouting slightly as he tilt his head back against the blonde's shoulder. "Although, you could have said, I would have been more than willing to keep talking if it pleased you so much, 007." he purrs quietly in Bond's ear, lowering his head a little afterwards as his soft chuckle turns into a cough.

"Oh, we could have some fun on missions, I think." James says as he places a few soft, chaste kisses on Q's exposed skin. "Or when I'm waiting for my flight back.. you do have a rather private office, just think of the possibilities." He teases, grinning a bit.

Another laugh turns into coughing, and Q shakes his head. "Don't make me laugh." he objects quietly as he leans more heavily back against James. "IF our relationship progresses to that level, James, then it certainly could be interesting." He concedes with a little smile, his eyes sliding closed. "This is really very nice.. you make a good nurse.." he mumbles softly before he sighs heavily. "Don't let me slip into the water and drown." he grumbles softly as he closes his eyes, relaxing more fully against the agent.

"Wouldn't dream of it, my dear Quartermaster." Bond reassures with a little smile as he soothes the younger man the best that he can. "Just relax, Q.. if I need to carry you back to bed because you fell asleep, then so be it. The warmth and steam should help you, though." he theorizes as he looks around, noticing how thick the steam is in the room, enough that it makes it hard to breathe in normal circumstances. But he's been told this sort of heat is good for a cold.

Q nods a little, and he turns his head towards James' neck softly, nuzzling there for a moment. "Thank you.. in case I forget.. for taking care of me..." He mumbles softly as he closes his eyes and relaxes, starting to drift off a little.

With a small nod of his head, James moves his cloth down to clean up Q's legs and then returns to his arms, shoulder and neck, and occasionally brushing it along Q's jaw.

"Any time, Q. But only for you."

* * *

**Short, cute little chappy for you all. I was actually more inspired for my Sherlock fic. But this was in my head all day so I just had to write the scene out. Poor Q just got walloped by his flu!**

**Thank you everyone for your wonderful reviews, please let me know what you think!**

**Reviews/comments welcome!**


	15. Chapter 15

"I should certainly hope so!" Q says indignantly which just makes him cough a little more. "Ugh, I hate being sick. and you arranged such a lovely holiday.. do I hear rain?" He asks as he stops for a moment and listens, only part of that slightly snarky.

James just chuckles softly and places a light kiss on the back of Q's shoulder. Despite his attempt at subduing his libido, he can't help but admire Q like this. Getting to touch his smooth skin, such a contrast to Bond's own, especially considering that there's hardly a scar on his skin, and it's so pale. But more than just the nudity, the way he's opening up, emotionally vulnerable, is what really gets to Bond. To be trusted with that side of Q, he considers a deep honor.

"Yes, you do hear rain.. Seems to be quite a storm outside. Did I forget to tell you that it's the rainy season here?" He asks curiously with a little smirk as he watches the younger man. "I guess we'll just have to stay inside afterall." He says with a little chuckle, before he sighs. "The water's cooling off.. come on.. lean forward a bit so I can get up and I'll help you out." He offers quietly as he nudges Q forward.

Grumbling a little, Q shoots a weak glare back at Bond, which is also less effective because he doesn't have his glasses on so his eyes are a little unfocused. "I am hardly an invalid, Bond. I merely have a cold, or a flu.. probably the bloody flu." He mutters, but all the same, he leans forward, briefly placing his face in the water before he lifts it with a soft exhale and a small cough. He can already feel and hear the slight rattling in his chest during the cough. His eyes are closed, and he sighs. "I need to eat something." he says lazily, turning his head to the side so he can watch the slightly blurry shape of James.

Bond smirks, agilely pulling his legs up under him and getting out, opening the drain and then slinging a towel around his waist before he offers his hands to help Q out of the tub. He's not so worried about the man being able to do things on his own, more that he might slip or something, as he seems a little uncoordinated. He does watch the younger man dunk his face with some amusement, shaking his head. "This is a whole new, odd side to you, Q." he says with a smirk as he starts to dry off the younger man, taking his time and making sure that he's dry. It's true that anyone who knows James Bond, 007, would not think of him as the domestic type, or the caring type, but there's something about Q that brings it out in him. The brunette just always looks so damned vulnerable.

Q also isn't the type to let someone take care of him like that, but he is feeling rather awful, and so at the moment he doesn't bloody well care. "James, where are my glasses?" He grumbles quietly, not sure if they left them in the bedroom or if they were here in the bathroom somewhere. Before he can start flailing around for them, he feels the towel secured around his face then the world comes into sharp focus when his glasses are placed on his face. "Oh. There you are. Much better." He says with a semblance of his former wit.

"Here I am." James says, resting his hand on Q's cheek for a moment before he leads the sick man out into the main room, digging through the brunette's clothes until he comes up with some pants which he tosses at Q, then another pair of pajama pants. When he turns around, Q has the pants on, and he hands over the pajama pants, holding the younger man when he starts coughing again.

Q tries to push him away, and he sighs a little. "I'll get you sick.." He says weakly, his pushing not very effective at all. When it doesn't look like Bond is going to let him go, he slumps against the older man. "Fine. See if I bloody care. Don't expect me to take care of you if you get sick." He grumbles as he rests his head on James's shoulder, all the energy leaving him.

Laughing a little, James holds Q up easily, and he leads him out to the livingroom, lowering him down to the couch and helping the brunette to lay down. "There you go.." he looks out at the rain, and then strokes Q's fringe back. "Sleep for a while, Q, I'll go see if I can find something to eat from the main house. I very much doubt that room service will deliver." He says with amusement, grabbing a blanket to tuck the young man in. "And stay off your laptop." He says in a firm tone, before he brings over some juice and water, putting them on the coffee table. "Try to drink something."

Making a little grunt of acknowledgement, Q glances up at Bond. "Be careful." He mumbles once he sees how hard the rain is coming down, not moving from his blanket cocoon, looking at the water as if he's not sure if it's worth getting out from beneath the blankets. In the end he decides it's not worth it just yet and instead yawns widely. "Not going anywhere. Go." He says with a dismissive wave of his hand.

Smiling a little at the picture that a sick Q makes all bundled up on the couch, James leans over and kisses that mop of wavy hair before he straightens to find himself some clothes that he won't mind being soaked in. "It's adorable how bossy you are when you can barely stand up on your own."

"I'll show you bossy." Q grumbles, throwing a decorative pillow at James weakly. "Go get me some food, slave." He orders weakly, reaching out to pick up the water and drink some of it before he puts it back down, giving the double-oh a surly, unhappy look.

Shocked into a loud laugh, James' eyebrows go up as he walks over to Q. "Is that what you want, Q, another minion to order around?" He asks playfully as he leans over the younger man. "Sleep. That's an order." He says firmly, kissing his forehead, a little concerned with how warm it is, before he gets up, slips on some sandals, makes sure that he has his room keys before he steps out into the driving rain.

It's obvious once Bond starts down the path, that something happened. This storm is bigger than anyone apparently anticipated, he can see how the water is affecting the landscape, and he knows that if it doesn't end soon they might have to deal with mudslides and they might very well be stuck at this lovely resort. Which is just fine by Bond, but he knows others might be a little less than pleased.

He's soaked through when he steps through the doors of the main building, not caring so much even if his shirt does cling to his muscular chest. At least he remembered to put the ring back on. It doesn't keep the pretty girl at the counter from giving him a stunning smile. "Is there anything I can help you with, sir?" She asks, leaning forward a little to give him a good view down her blouse.

Now, 007 has always had a rather healthy libido. Some might call it overactive. And at one time this woman would have been just his type. Beautiful, curvy and willing. And as he gazes at her, he realizes that as luscious as her body is, it bores him. He knows every place that he could touch or suck or kiss that would make her writhe in pleasure and cry out his name. There's no challenge in it. And instead of her deep brown eyes, all he can think of are a pair of vivid green ones looking at him condescendingly from behind a pair of thick-rimmed glasses.

That realization makes him smile a little as he looks at the young woman in front of him. Because he finds that he doesn't want her curves and darkly tanned skin, he wants to explore the flat planes of a much paler body. Unfortunately that isn't in the cards for the moment, and he shakes his head to try and get himself back on track.

"Maybe you can.. You see, my husband seems to have come down with the flu." James says sadly, watching as the girl's eyes flicker down to his left hand and the ring there, then she looks briefly disappointed and straightens up. Ignoring that, Bond pushes on. "And seeing as it's raining by the bucket out there, I figured room service was out of the question, so I was hoping if I might be able to rustle up some soup or something for him to eat... In a container that will survive the storm?" He asks hopefully, knowing he comes across as a very concerned husband, and to be honest he is. Except for the fact that he isn't actually married to Q.

Despite her disappointment, the woman's expression softens. "Awww. Poor thing... Sick on vacation, there's nothing worse." She coos sympathetically, before she smiles. "Let me just call down to the kitchen, and see what I can do, what room are you in?" She asks as she picks up the phone and presses a few buttons, then holds a pen above a piece of paper to take down notes.

Bond gives the cabin number before he leans on the counter a little, not seeming to notice that he's still soaked through, but at least he's not dripping on her counter. For a moment he looks out at the rain, hoping that his quartermaster is getting some sleep, he doesn't like leaving him alone, not since the incident with the gun.

Vaguely James registers the woman talking to someone in the kitchens but he's staring at the rain, thinking of Q, and hoping that the weather remains difficult so they can perhaps extend their stay a little. They can't be expected to get to the airport in weather like this, especially with some of the sub-standard roads he saw on the way in. He's finally drawn back to the present when the woman says something to him.

"Mr. Bond? Sir? The kitchens will be bringing something right up for you."

"Thank you, miss. My husband will appreciate your kindness."

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**Ahhh! Adorable fluff. I can't help myself. Q just lends himself to adorableness.**

**Thank you all for your lovely reviews. More to come soon, and hopefully Q will recover some of his snark because it's just so cute, especially when he's sick and can't quite pull off the aloof thing.**

**Reviews/comments are much loved, please let me know what you think!**


	16. Chapter 16

When Bond finally makes it back to the bungalow, he's soaked again but he has soup for Q, and other foods which the woman got the kitchen to round up for them, mostly easy to eat things that will last or are good cold. As soon as he steps in however, he's confronted by the barrel of a gun - and when did Q even retrieve that? - which the young man is aiming in his direction. The hand is shaking and as soon as the brunette sees who it is, he drops his hand and gun to the ground, the safety still on so there's no danger of it going off.

"You shouldn't leave me alone so soon after a mission. I got worried, and then I got paranoid. Had to get up to get the gun.." Q mutters as he looks over at Bond, though it seems both the juice and water were consumed while Bond was gone. "And now I'm exhausted.." He mumbles softly, turning his head into the pillow so some of his words come out muffled.

James arches an eyebrow and he chuckles a little. "You are a little bit pathetic when you're sick, Q." he says playfully, moving over to the counter and putting down the bags of food, running a hand over his wet hair. At least he puts some of the soup into a large mug for Q and then brings it over. "Here.. some soup for you." he says as he runs a hand over Q's hair. "I'm going to dry off." he announces before going to the bedroom to strip down and dry off, coming back in pajama pants, a towel rubbing over his hair.

With a little groan, leaving the gun on the coffee table, Q slowly starts to sit up, bundling the covers around himself as he picks up the mug, giving a rattling sigh of relief as he sips at the soup quietly for a few moments, glancing up when Bond comes back out. "It is very vexing to feel as awful as I do, and for you to look as good as you do." He grumbles over the mug of his soup, drinking more of it happily as he adjusts the blanket around himself for a moment.

Chuckling a little as he tosses aside the damp towel, Bond settles on the couch next to Q. "I think I kind of like you when you're sick. You're chatty." He says with a little smirk, then adds, "Your filters are down.." he says as he reaches out to brush hair back from Q's face, running his hand through it slowly but being careful of his glasses. "There was a very nice girl who was able to get this food for us, so make sure you finish it all." he says in a firm tone, slowly getting up and going to get himself something to eat as well.

"Flirting your way into special favors again?" Q asks, not able to help sounding a little jealous as she watches Bond move around, holding his mug away from him for a moment as he falls into a coughing fit, followed by a groan. He's also starting to sound a bit stuffy one might note. He grumbles a little, finishing the soup. "Get me water while you're up, slave." He says in his best arrogant voice, before he snickers a little.

James glances over at Q again and he shakes his head. "She wanted to flirt with me, but I told her I was there only to help my husband." He reassures, starting himself a pot of coffee before bringing some food back to the couch, giving Q a bottle of water. "Yes, master, anything you want, master." He says with a slight lisp to his tone, smirking as he straightens up afterward. "You are not good at being sick, are you?" He seems highly amused by this as he returns to the counter to get himself something to drink and get more soup for Q before he goes back to sit beside the sick man.

Q grumbles a little and then nods quietly as he takes the water, then bundles back up as he drinks the water. "I hate being sick." he says quietly as he looks over at Bond, hating the fact that he blushes, pleased that Bond made it clear to an attractive woman that he wasn't available. Even if it was under fake pretenses. "Thank you for going out in this storm to get food, James.." he says quietly, tilting over a little to rest against the agent's shoulder, trying not to get in the way, but he's feeling rather pathetic and figures he can sucker the agent into a little comfort, even if it's not natural for him.

Glancing at Q for a few moments, James smiles as he eats, putting his bare feet up on the edge of the coffee table. After he gets comfortable, he looks at Q as he eats from a plate he put on the other side of him on the couch, tilting his head to rest his cheek against Q's forehead for a moment. "You're still burning up.." he says quietly in concern as he looks at the younger man.

Still drinking his water, Q makes a face. "I feel cold.. definitely a flu." he grumbles as he glances up at James curiously for a few moments, then straightens away from him. "I don't want to get you sick.." he says quietly, coughing weakly before drinking more water and reaching out for his mug of soup. "Did you happen to ask them where our TV went?" he asks with a little pout, reaching out to hit a button on Bond's laptop to wake it up and then move over to start some movie or other from the website they were using the night before.

"Don't worry, I hardly ever get sick." James says with a little smile, reaching out to pull Q back against him, willing to risk it to give the younger man a little comfort, turning his head and kissing his head through the hair gently.

Making a little grunt, Q can feel himself starting to drift off again, so he finishes as much of his soup as he can before he put the mug aside, taking a deep breath and sighing.

"Fine. Don't come to me complaining if you get sick."

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**Another short little chapter for you. But even so, I'm happy with this chapter. I hope you all are as well!**

**Reviews/comments welcome!**


	17. Chapter 17

When Q falls asleep against him, James just continues to hold him, kissing the top of his head. But eventually he both gets restless and his arm starts to go numb, so he gently lays the boffin down on the couch, making sure the blanket is tucked around him and his legs are up on the couch. The rain has gotten a little less violent but it's still falling, so James decides to be a little devious, so he picks up his cellphone and slips out onto the deck, leaving the door open so he can hear if the young brunette wakes up, before he dials and leans on the railing with one hand.

"James Bond, shouldn't you be.. I don't know, having some fun or terrorizing our young Quartermaster?" Moneypenny asks as she answers the phone, sounding highly amused.

"I've left off the terrorizing him for the moment. He's been working too hard, and has caught himself a horrible flu. Not to mention the fact that it's raining cats and dogs.. The roads may be too bad, and we may not be able to make it out of here by the end of the week." James says casually with a little smile, trying not to let his voice betray too much.

Eve just laughs a little. "And of course you call me with this bit of news because you know I'm more sympathetic to Q's health than anyone else. I suppose this weather looks like it's going to be around for a while?" She asks, amusement in her tone.

"Well, I'm not sure, but we do want to make sure that Q has a full recovery before he flies anywhere. He doesn't handle flying well in the first place, I don't think it would be safe for him to fly until he's back to one-hundred percent." Bond says calmly as he listens to the ocean, then he turns and looks back at the sleeping man on the couch, who looks so young and vulnerable to him at the moment.

"Oh, of course. We can't have our esteemed Quartermaster at anything less than his best. And I am sure he will benefit from being in your tender care." Eve sounds very much like she's trying not to laugh, but the grin is more than obvious in her voice. "I suppose I might be able to negotiate you another week or two. Mudslides are so very dangerous and unpredictable, especially in the rainy season.." There's mock-concern in her tone now, before she chuckles a little. "I will do this for you, Bond.. On one condition." She says in a firm tone.

"And what's that, Miss Moneypenny? Surely getting shot by you is enough to incur this small favor?" Bond asks curiously with a slight chuckle.

Moneypenny laughs softly. "Oh, I don't want very much.. Only a few details." Her voice drops a little into a more seductive register, the type that she used when she was shaving Bond in Shanghai.

Sighing a little and turning to look back over the ocean, content for now that Q is going to remain asleep, James looks down into the water below their bungalow. "Now, now, Eve.. you know I don't kiss and tell." He scolds gently, a little amused. "Afterall, I could tell some rather interesting things about you, now couldn't I?"

A gasp from the other end. "James Bond, don't you dare!" Eve's voice sounds rather shocked and maybe a little bit afraid, before she turns to sullen and pouty. "Fine. I'll buy you the time you want. At least bring me back something pretty."

Chuckling a little, James nods even though she can't see him. "I will bring you back something wonderful, Miss Moneypenny. Goodnight." he says before he hangs up, turning to head back inside, only to see a pair of sleepy eyes looking at him suspiciously from the couch.

"Who was on the phone, James?" Q asks, still sleepy as he snuggles down in his covers, glasses on at the moment as he stretches out on the couch, so that he can see James, watching him closely.

James smiles as he walks over and perches on the edge of the couch, reaching out to brush some hair out of Q's eyes. "Eve." He says before he shrugs. "Just checking in, updating her on what's going on." He explains as he looks at the brunette. "Come on.. lets get you to bed." He says mischievously with a little wink before he suddenly scoops Q up into his arms, bridal style, blankets and all.

After a token protest, because he really was too tired to get up by himself, Q tilts his head down against James' shoulder. "You're plotting something, don't lie to me, I'm in your ear on missions, and you're in mine, I can tell when you're plotting something." he says before he sighs a little. "Don't you tell anyone about this, either.. The.. the carrying thing, I mean.." he mumbles as he finds himself laid out on the bed and the covers slowly undone from his body to spread them out properly before James slides into bed as well and pulls Q back against him, Q's back flat against Bond's chest.

Gently, James starts placing soft kisses on Q's shoulder and neck once in a while, nuzzling into his hair and then sighing a little. "Just relax, Q. Don't think about work. I won't tell anyone anything that happens here. I don't kiss and tell. Stop worrying and let yourself enjoy being here, as much as you can." he soothes quietly as he holds the younger man, pressing another light kiss to his shoulder.

Q grumbles a little. "James, I am hardly in the mood or condition for sex. Surely you can control your libido for a while?" he asks as he shifts, coughing hard for a few moments before relaxing and trying to find a spot that doesn't hurt his chest.

Rubbing Q's chest soothingly, James shakes his head for a few moments. "You ridiculous boy." he says playfully. "I am not trying to seduce you. Trust me, you'll know if I'm trying to seduce you." he purrs, before he just smiles, placing a few more soft kisses. "I just happen to enjoy being allowed to kiss you. And I thought you enjoyed it. I just want you to relax... Get some sleep." He says quietly, giving him one last kiss on the shoulder before he merely holds the younger man.

"It is rather nice." Q mumbles quietly as he relaxes a little, drifting off slightly. "Well.. carry on, then.." He says in a shadow of his normal lofty tones, stretching out a little before he curls back into himself a bit as he relaxes. "I forgot how much I missed this." He says quietly, resting his hand over James' gently. "Not being alone.. being held.. I missed that.." He mutters before finally drifting off.

James sighs a little as he looks at the mop of hair in front of him, kissing the back of Q's neck softly for a moment before he just watches the young man sleep. When he starts to fall asleep as well, he sighs a little. "My dear, Q.. I will hold you whenever you like." He says before he falls asleep, his forehead resting against the brunette's head, as the rain continues to fall outside.

* * *

**So sorry for the slow update on this one! My Bond muse is sulking, I think. Possibly because my Sherlock muse whipped her butt these last few days, lol. I will try and do better! Once I reconcile my muses. :D**

**I hope you all enjoy this short little chapter. Bond SO knows how to use those charms of his. Question is... when will Q find out? :)**

**Reviews/comments very welcome!**


	18. Chapter 18

The sound of typing starts to wake James up, and he finds himself laying on his back instead of curled around a certain genius. But he's generally a very light sleeper so he's very impressed when he opens his eyes and sees Q sitting up in bed slightly with his laptop propped up on his legs. And when did he even get his laptop? He sighs a little, smirking as he watches the entranced young man. "You. Are supposed to be resting." he says before he stretches a little, noticing he's getting lazy when he figures out he's not 100% instantly awake like he usually is.

"I am resting. I am in bed, I got myself some more fluids, I'm all wrapped up in covers despite the fact that it's a bit stifling in here. I think the air conditioning needs to be turned up." Q says calmly, sounding a little weak still and generally stuffed up but otherwise sounding better than he did earlier, at least until he coughs. Once the fit is over, he turns back to his laptop and continues his typing.

Spotting the water that Q does indeed have on his bedside, James nods a little. "You're stealthier than I thought.. I'm a very light sleeper." He says as he looks at Q, forcing himself to sit up and lean against the headboard to watch what Q is doing. "Are you working?" He asks, skeptically arching an eyebrow, his tone definitely not approving as he continues to watch the sick young genius.

Q lets out a snort, then he coughs a little before he goes back to working. "Honestly, it was relatively easy. And yes, this is a bit of code I was working on before I left. Since I am trapped here in a monsoon and a bit miserable, it seems logical I could get some work done." he notes, glancing over at Bond for a moment, some of his detached demeanor back it seems.

Shaking his head for a few moments, James reaches out and he puts his hand on top of one of Q's wrists. "You're not here to work, Q. Well, we were originally but the mission is over now. You can relax. R can handle Q-branch for a while, surely." He says quietly as he watches the younger man's profile, reaching his free hand up and resting it against Q's forehead. "Your fever appears to have broken at least.." he says quietly, sounding a little relieved about that.

Moving his head away from Bond's hand a little, he goes back to typing. "Well, it's only a few more days until we'll be back, so there's no reason not to finish up a few things until I get back." He says quietly, able to continue his work even with Bond's hand on his wrist, since it doesn't really restrict anything.

"Mmm.. I wouldn't count on our return so soon.." James says casually before he sighs. "Don't make me confiscate your laptop, Q." He scolds the other man lightly, shaking his head. "Why don't you tell me how you learned to surf, instead?" He asks, lifting one of Q's hands away from the keyboard, in both of his, leaning over and giving the back of it a soft kiss.

Finally conceding that he's not going to get any work done while James is awake and bored, Q saves his work and logs out of his system before he closes the lid to his laptop, and looks over at James. "I told you, I had a life before MI6." He considers for a few moments. "As you might imagine, I graduated school early, and had my pick of universities. I didn't want to stay in England, so I went to America, and I spent a year at a university in California where I learned to surf, before I went to MIT." He says casually as he looks over at Bond. "MIT was a bit like working as Quartermaster, in fact. I had access to a great deal of materials, and a lot of leeway to use those things as I saw fit. Of course, as head of Q-branch I can work on more dangerous things, and the parts I can obtain are more expensive." he notes as he thinks about it, tilting his head back against the headboard to look at the ceiling. Something then seems to soak into his sick brain, and he looks over at James for a moment. "Wait.. you think we'll be here longer?" And of course that connects with who James Bond is as a person, and his eyes narrow in suspicion as he looks at the older man. "James.. what did you do?"

The innocent look on the agent's face almost says it all, but James smiles a little. "Nothing illegal, nothing that will even really get me in trouble." He says thoughtfully, keeping a hold of one of Q's hands. "So you learned to surf when you were in California for a year." he says before he smiles a little. "I never took you for a sportsman, Q." he says in an attempt to change the subject.

"Mmm. There are very few sports that I excel at. I did dabble in gymnastics when I was younger, but that was a long time ago.." Q says thoughtfully, then adds, "That and swimming were the two things that I appeared to be uniquely suited to." he turns his head back away from James to stare across the room, before looking out the door to one of the windows in the living area, watching what's left of the rain which is just a light drizzle.

"Gymnastics.. well, doesn't that bring up all sorts of interesting mental pictures.." James says playfully, smirking a little, shifting his hold on Q's hand until their fingers are intertwined. "Of course, I now must see you on a surf board.. that's just too good to pass up." His tone remains light and playful, even though he's hoping that he will get to see that because Q will be much better.

"No." Q says almost immediately without looking at James.

"No what, I didn't even ask you anything." James points out, shifting a little so he can reach up and brush some hair back from Q's forehead, tucking it behind his ear in a slow, gentle gesture.

Rolling his eyes behind his glasses, Q lifts his free hand to grasp his glasses on top and bottom of the lens, adjusting it how it's sitting on his nose before his hand falls away. "I am not as flexible as I used to be, nor am I going to show you anything or dress up in spandex." He says as he glances at James out of the corner of his eye, smirking a little before he shakes his head slowly.

"Hmmm. Anything else I should know about you, dear Quartermaster?" James asks playfully as he looks at the younger man, since this entire trip has been a revelation and he wants to know as much as he can about the other man.

Q considers the question for a few moments, tilting his head to the side, his hand closing a little around James' hand. "I quite enjoy music, and I tend to sing along to it a bit. I've been told that I have a good voice." He says as he looks at his closed laptop, stroking his free hand over the case slowly, fingers tapping out an unheard rhythm, perhaps a sequence of key strokes, it's hard to tell when you're talking to Q. "I don't get a chance to listen to quite as much music as I used to, what with you double-oh's in my ear and spending so many hours at Q-branch. And who knows what my minions would think of me if they caught me singing.." He scoffs, shaking his head a little for a few moments as he stares at the top of his laptop case.

"Yes, they must never know that you're human." James says with a soft smile as he regards his - and when did he start referring to Q as 'his'? - boffin. "Better for them to think you're a cyborg who can only be appeased, and prevented from taking over the world, if he's constantly supplied with Earl Grey." He teases playfully.

"Human cyborg relations." Q mutters mostly to himself before he snickers a little. "Yes, perhaps they do think something of the sort. But it hardly matters. And if you insist, I will sing for you when I have a proper lung capacity back. In other words, after this damned cough goes away." He mutters, annoyed as he tries to take a deep breath and it dissolves into a coughing fit.

Rubbing Q's back through the coughing to try and soothe him, James then slides his hand up into the young Quartermaster's hair, stroking through it gently and massaging his scalp lightly at the same time/

"I am sure you sing like a nightingale."

* * *

**Ok.. so I just found this little clip of Ben Whishaw singing in The Tempest, and I had to put it in. He has a really good voice, even if the clip isn't that long. Besides, can't you just see University-aged Q rocking along to music as he hacks, and singing along to it? Everyone has their quirks. :)**

**My Bond muse seems to have won out tonight, so I hope you all enjoy this fluffy little chapter.**

**Reviews/comments welcome!**


	19. Chapter 19

"I most certainly do not. And do not think that you've distracted me from my original question. What do you mean, not to count our return so soon? What did you do?" Q asks Bond suspiciously as he looks over at him after his coughing fit is over, adjusting his glasses once again so they sit properly on his face.

James smirks a little. "You wound me, Q. You are falsely accusing me of being up to something." He says innocently as he looks at the other man. "It has been raining quite a bit, that combined with it being the rainy season in general, I've heard some of the roads here are easy to wash out." he says innocently as he looks at Q, still rubbing his back in soothing circles, before he slips out of bed to go get himself something to drink an something for Q as well.

Leaning back against the headboard, Q waits until Bond returns, watching the older man suspiciously. "You forget one simple thing, James." He says, taking the juice from the older man and taking a drink before he continues. "I have been in your ear on dozens of missions, I have heard you sweet talk marks, charm you way through any situation, I can tell when you're lying. And I can tell when you've got an idea that you're working on. And that is precisely what you sound like right now."

Realizing that he's not going to get anything past Q, even when he's as sick as he is, James smiles, settling back down beside him on the bed. "You're far too clever, even when sick." He notes before he adds, "I may have convinced Eve that we should have another week or two here. Afterall, you shouldn't be flying until you're well, and we need our Quartermaster in top-top shape." he says as he watches the younger man.

Closing his eyes for a moment, Q lets out a little sigh that speaks of suffering with 007 for quite some time, before he shakes his head for a few moments. "Well, I have been putting in 16 to 18 hour shifts ever since I was promoted to the position of Q." he says thoughtfully. "And that's been over a year now. I suppose I can take a little break, and they know where we are if they need me. I can check in to make sure everything is running smoothly." He says thoughtfully as he stares at the opposite wall, only not freaking out more because he still feels rather awful.

The easy acceptance throws the agent off-guard, and Bond looks at Q warily, waiting for the inevitable frustrated exasperation to come about. When it doesn't, he continues to watch the younger man for a moment. "Well. That was rather a bit easier than I expected." he says quietly, still a little unsettled by it, taking another drink of his juice

"I am simply not feeling up to giving you the proper verbal thrashing you deserve for your deviance in this matter." Q says calmly as he glances over at James for a moment, then he leans back against the headboard and snuggles down into the pillows he has propped up there. "Rest assured, when I am completely healthy once again, I will take you in hand for the liberties you are taking. You could be putting agents in danger as we speak because I am unable to come up with a truly brilliant contraption that will, naturally, save their life." He says dryly, looking over at James for a few moments, his face deadpanned, but there's a glimmer of amusement in his eyes, and his lips twitch a little as he suppresses a smile. Finally, he sits up and sighs, taking another drink of his juice before he slowly stands, wobbling a little before he steps to the bathroom and from the sounds of things, starts to run himself a bath.

Not really being able to help himself, Bond chuckles a little when Q reverts to his posh, dry tones, and so he just grins and gets up smoothly to follow him. "Be careful, you haven't had a lot to eat." He says before he adds, "Want me to join you for a bath again?" He asks, placing a kiss against the younger man's hairline along the back of his neck.

Giving a little shrug to perhaps dislodge Bond, though more likely just to express his ambivalence, Q glances over his shoulder at Bond. "Are you always this clingy?" he teases with definite amusement this time. "I'd prefer some alone time actually. Why don't you go and make us some breakfast, or whatever time of day it is. Bloody hard to tell when I sleep all day." he says with a little shake of his head, swatting Bond away with a little smile.

Highly amused, James chuckles a little. "I've heard that some people appreciate being looked after when they're sick." He teases, placing one more kiss on the younger man's shoulder. "But.. if you insist." He says, then adds, "Yell if you want me to wash your back." He says, raking a playfully lascivious gaze over Q for a moment before he exits the bathroom and goes out to the main room in order to make some breakfast.

After a long, hot bath, Q comes out, steam wafting out from the bathroom, before he wanders out in a comfortable pair of pants and a t-shirt that actually fits his body quite well. His hair is damp and curling around the edges, but he ignores it, looking around curiously until he spots Bond on the deck, walking toward him slowly. "I am feeling a bit better today." he says thoughtfully as he moves over, humming some tune or another to himself as he takes one of the seats at the table and then reaches out to take some fruit off of one of the plates Bond has put there. There's still a fine sheet of mist and drizzle coming down, giving everything a little haze to it.

"I noticed, you were far wittier this morning than you have been. I didn't realize how much I missed it." James says as he leans on the table toward the younger man, smiling quietly, since he's eating a bit off the plates as well. Of course he's been eating for a bit longer so he's mostly just picking at the moment. Gently, he reaches over and brushes some of Q's curls back from his face and tucks them behind an ear. "You need a haircut. Even for you, your hair is getting a bit long." he says playfully with a little smirk.

Q snorts a little, which he regrets since it makes him cough slightly. "You shouldn't complain, as I recall you rather like sinking your hands into my hair." He points out wryly with a slight smirk at Bond. While his mind may be mostly recovered, his body is not, making the younger man's movements slower than they usually are, and his fingers less dexterous. "You do seem to have a bit of an obsession with it, in any case."

Not being able to help himself, Bond chuckles lightly and then nods quietly. "Guilty." he notes as he looks at Q. "It's not my fault your hair is very soft, and touchable. And I have to admit, I've always been a sucker for brunette's." he note playfully as he runs his fingers through the soft strands of hair. "You don't exactly seem to hate it, either." He adds as he watches Q lean into his hand a little, especially when he rubs his fingertips gently against the other man's scalp.

"You've found my weakness, it seems, 007." Q says quietly, sighing a little as he tilts his head back into James' hand encouragingly. "I have a rather sensitive scalp. And that feels rather good, soothing actually. It's one reason I keep my hair a bit longer, besides that it rather suits me, don't you think?" He asks, turning his green eyes over toward Bond.

A small nod is given as James becomes somewhat entranced with running his hand through Q's hair. "Hmm. It does look good on you. I look forward to seeing it in many different stages of dishevelment." He says with a mischievous smirk as he continues to watch the younger man.

Q just smiles softly as he looks over at Bond for a few moments. "Do you, now?" He asks, continuing to eat slowly, and then waiting until he's swallowed before he continues. "Hm. Unfortunately your hair doesn't lend itself to dishevelment, does it? I suppose I'll just have to leave my mark in other ways.." he says as he reaches out, fingertips lightly trailing down Bond's neck and over his shoulder lightly since the agent was so kind as to go without a shirt.

A small shiver goes down Bond's spine, and goose bumps rise on his skin lightly from the touch, before he looks into the younger man's eyes, leaning closer so their faces are closer.

"Now, now, that wouldn't go over well on my missions, now would it?"

* * *

**Yay, Q has recovered his wit! Guess he just had to start feeling a little better, Hehee.**

**I have given up on any plan as to when I update things. I will update one story, every day, I just have no clue which it will be, lol. I will try not to go more than two days between updates. Sorry to be so inconsistent, especially when you guys are so wonderful to be following this, but my muses are fighting recently. :)**

**Still, thank you all for your continued interest in this fic, I hope I will live up to expectations.**

**Please let me know what you think, reviews/comments welcome!**


	20. Chapter 20

"Why not?" Q asks, pouting just a little. "Don't your mission women know what they're in for? Do any of them honestly think that they can chain you down with one night of sex?" He asks, then he sighs a little. "And while we're on the subject, I am not going to ask you not to do your job, Bond. I'm just not sure I'll be able to be in your ear when you take your marks back to your hotel room." He says in a slightly apologetic look, coughing again before he turns his attention back to the table and the food spread out there.

James continues to run his hand through Q's hair, petting it at some points, burying his fingers in it at others. "Some of the girls know what it is I'm offering. Others I have to fool into thinking it's something more, or it could be something more." He says seriously as he watches Q. "But.. I am supposed to have seven days of leave for every three I spend in the field. Not that it ever works out that way for me. When I get back from a mission, you can mark me up as much as you like, as long as I'm physically up for it." he says quietly, though his tone implies there are very few situations in which he wouldn't be up for it. "And I was under the impression you never listened to me seduce anyone." He sounds amused, even chuckling a little. "I used to think it was to keep your virgin ears pure, but I'm starting to think nothing about you is virgin." He says playfully.

Nearly choking on his juice which sends him into another coughing fit, Q thumps himself on the chest a few times, before he clears his throat. "No, James, I am hardly a virgin." he scolds, looking at James disapprovingly. "No, I do try and give you double-ohs what little privacy I can, so I tend to log off during your more intimate moments, until I'm needed again." He notes as he fairly purrs at the attention he's receiving, pulling one foot up onto the chair with him, holding his leg to his chest.

"Thank you for that, Q. It's.. surprisingly good of you." James says quietly, grinning a little as he watches the young man, who looks especially young now, even if he's fairly devouring the food he put out, not seeming to realize how much he's eating. Which the agent is going to say absolutely nothing about because he doesn't want to discourage Q from eating. "As long as you understand that I have to do what I have to do out there, you don't turn into a jealous prick if I have to seduce someone to gain information or finish a mission, and you know that anything in the field, is just that. Field work. You are the one who I will come home to, Q. The one I'll always be thinking about. As long as you understand that, we can make the rest work." He says quietly as he massages the back of Q's neck.

A little uncomfortable with where this conversation is going, Q shifts in his seat and sighs a little. "I believe I can agree to those terms. But if you recall, I did not exactly agree to a full relationship with you yet, Bond. I agreed to give you a chance, and it seems you have a bit longer to prove yourself, if you arranged for us to have extra vacation time." Yes, he knows that most of that is just him lying to himself, because there is no way he's going to go back to how they were before, but because of the heavy emotional tone to the conversation, he feels the need to distance himself slightly from it. Mostly it's a defense mechanism.

It's going to be a miracle if this relationship can work given that they're both emotional cripples in a way. But Bond recognizes what Q is doing and so doesn't take the younger man's words to heart, or let it cripple his confidence in any way. "Yes, we do have quite a bit longer for me to convince you.." A low chuckle comes from him as James watches the profile of the genius next to him. "Well, just so you know what you might be getting into, then. I know how you like to be fully informed." His hand continues to stroke through Q's hair until he can't help himself anymore, scooting his chair a little closer until he can lean in and place a few soft kisses along the beautiful, long column of pale flesh along Q's throat.

"I think you have an obsession with my neck, Bond." Q says casually, having gotten used to the soft kisses and other things that he might have found extremely distracting and disconcerting before all of this happened. He doesn't let it stop him from eating, either, finally feeling full, he instead just sits back. "You could have at least made me a cup of tea." he grumbles as he licks his fingers clean of fruit juice.

"Forgive me, dear Quartermaster. How could I have overlooked that?" Bond murmurs against Q's skin for a moment, before he places another soft kiss before he pulls back, hand sliding down the back of the genius' neck before he gets up and heads inside to make some coffee and a cup of tea for the sick man on the deck.

Letting his head tilt over the back of the chair, Q sighs a little with a small smile. "Clearly, you had better learn fast, James. If you wish to stay with me after this, then you need to learn to keep me supplied with Earl Grey. Even my minions learned that in short order, so you should be able to learn as well. I understand that agents can be a little thick-headed, but it is a rather simple task." He calls back to the older man with a little smile on his face.

James can't help but grin, glad to have his Q back, the one with wit and banter, two of the things he loves about the young genius. The tea is made in short order, and he brings it out to the deck. "I am a rather fast learner." He reassures, then he runs his fingers along the skin of Q's neck, feeling how cool it is. "You shouldn't be sitting out here with it being so damp. Let me at least get you a blanket." he says as he turns and heads inside, snatching up one of the terry cloth robes that are provided instead and he brings it out, holding it up. "Come on. Stand up, get into this."

Q can't help but give James a soft smile, sipping his tea carefully before he slowly gets up, turning his back to Bond and slipping his arms into the robe, tying it in front of him before he sits back down. "You are such a mother hen, James." He says with a affection in his tone, relaxing as he picks up his tea, the coldness in his tone warming up a little, making his voice sound more like warm honey. "Now, come back and sit down, James." he says as he motions to the seat beside him. "Hard to enjoy the view without my husband by my side." He says playfully as he turns his head slightly to look at him.

Bond looks down at the ring on his hand and he laughs softly. "Well, you should definitely enjoy the view, darling." he says as he pulls the chair over to sit beside Q, putting his arm along the back of Q's chair to look out over the water. "Not very much of a view with the clouds. It's disappointing, actually." He laments as he looks around, before he looks back at Q. "And here, I was hoping you would have a nice tan line by the time we got back to headquarters." he says as he takes Q's left hand in his, looking down at the ring, twisting it a little, stretching out the younger man's fingers, thinking about how capable they are on a keyboard or working on small electronics, wondering how capable they will be in other situations.

And yes, he thinks that it will be inevitable that they will be in that situation, though he knows that he's going to have to work for it. He loves that about Q though. The fact that the young man won't just give in to his charms, the challenge of having to seduce, to convince his quartermaster to give himself over to James' capable hands. Gently, he strokes his thumb down the brunette's fingers for a few moments, finishing his examination of the man's hand and lifting it slowly to press his lips to the center of his palm in a gentle kiss.

Curious, Q just watches what Bond is doing to his hand, enjoying the gentle sensations actually as he tries to figure out what is going on in the man's mind. After the kiss, he smiles softly as he watches Bond. "You seem to have a bit of a fascination with my hands.. Do you have a hand fetish, Mr. Bond?" He asks playfully as he watches the older man.

"Hmmm.. no. Not in general. Though I may have developed a fetish for your hands, after watching you work your magic on keyboards and when I've seen you working on your gadgets." James admits quietly as he lifts Q's hand again to kiss the back of it softly. "They elegant, capable, and deceptively strong." He says quietly as he continues to look at his hand for a few moments, then looks up into those green eyes. "I can't wait to see if they can push my buttons as well as they work a keyboard." He says in a slightly more sultry tone.

Q can't help but just laugh a little, "You can't get your mind out of the gutter for a moment, can you?" He asks, but he sounds amused, and maybe a little pleased as he sips his tea, letting James fondle his other hand. "I'm afraid it will be quite some time before you find out for yourself. But I've been assured that I am an excellent lover. Very.. attentive." he says as he wiggles his fingers against Bond's hand lightly in a surprisingly graceful movement. He knows that he's teasing Bond a bit with this information, but he really can't help it.

An interested sound comes from James as he looks over at Q. "Oh, I know nothing good comes easy, Q. I know you're going to make me work for it. But one day, I am going to find out just what these hands can do, you can be assured of that.." he says with a little smile as he looks down at the hand in his, kissing it again softly. "You should know, I enjoy a challenge." he says with a small chuckle, sitting back and sliding his calloused fingers between the softer ones of the younger man.

"Oh, I assure you. It will be well worth the wait, James." Q says softly, keeping his voice soft and warm, before he coughs a little again, fingers closing around the agent's. "I hope you don't blame me for wanting to make sure this is about more than merely getting into my pants." he says quietly as he looks at James, slouching down a bit in his chair, tilting his head back against the chair, looking out over the water. "It's still beautiful, in a more melancholic way, you know. The view, that is." He vaguely motions with his free hand before it falls limply to his lap. "I hate being sick." He whines in a slightly pouty tone, rolling his head onto Bond's shoulder, curling up a little against his side, as much as he can while still staying in his chair.

Looking at his sick, somewhat pathetic Quartermaster, Bond smiles and releases Q's hand to put that arm around the slim shoulders of the brunette, his free hand taking the other man's again to gently press it against the center of his chest, letting the younger man feel James' strong, steady heartbeat.

"Just rest, Q. That is your job. Get better."

* * *

**I am so glad the banter is back! I had worried that I had strayed too far one way and I wouldn't be able to get them back to this point. But suddenly Q wants to get all snooty again. And seriously, he needs to get a bit better, because I have a really super cute scene planned, but it can't happen with him as he is. I may need to skip a few days, as much as I don't want to.**

**Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this super cute chapter. I had fun writing it. And as always, reviews and comments are most welcome!**


	21. Chapter 21

It could have been five minutes or an hour as Q sort of zones out against Bond's shoulder, but he finally comes back to himself, taking a deep breath as he opens his eyes a looks up at James. "How long was I out of it?" He asks after a few moments, knowing he wasn't really asleep since he doesn't feel like it, he was just focusing o his breathing and on James' heartbeat.

"Hm? Just a few hours.. Come on.. lets move you inside before you get worse from the chill out here." James says before he starts to get up, drawing Q up with him, leading the younger man inside and closing the doors before he leads the genius over to the couch. "Take the robe back off, shirt too, then get comfortable. " He nearly orders, moving with predatory grace toward the bedroom, coming back with a little bottle in his hands.

Still feeling a little out of it, Q does as he's told, removing his shirt and robe, laying on the couch on his stomach, a comfortable position since it doesn't seem to put pressure on his lungs. Still, he gives a few small coughs before his eyes half-close, waiting for Bond to return. When he sees the bottle, he adds, "That had better not be lube, unless you are kinkier than I imagined." he says with a little chuckle.

"Now who's mind is in the gutter?" James challenges with an arch of an eyebrow. "It's massage oil, actually." He says as he shows it to Q. "I thought you might appreciate it, and it would keep me occupied." He says with a small chuckle. "Bloody hell, I'm going stir crazy." he says as he sits beside Q's hips, spreading some oil on his hands before he reaches out, smoothing it over Q's back and starting a gentle massage..

Q grumbles a little, then groans softly as he starts to relax under the ministrations of the agent. "Then go.. out.. go for a walk or a swim or something.." he mumbles, before he smiles. "However will you manage to stay here for another week or more with me, when there is no one to kill, no one to shag... Well.. there are lots of people to shag most likely. Many young, nubile women.." He says as he glances at Bond with a little smirk.

Chuckling a little to himself as he keeps up with the massage, James shakes his head a little. "Yes, no doubt there are many women who would be a willing bed partner.." he says casually as he looks at Q. "How many times do I have to tell you I do not want them, not now?" Bond asks as he looks down at the younger man in front of him, admiring the stretch of pale skin under his hands. "Maybe I'll go for a run and let you sleep after this." Shaking his head a little, James leans down to kiss his head gently.

"Once more, as always, James." Q murmurs with a little giggle, thinking of Pirates of the Caribbean when he says it, though he's fairly sure that James will not understand the reference. "Yes, go out, burn off some of that energy of yours." He says with a little smile. "That feels lovely. You are a man of many talents, Mr. Bond.." He says with a small sigh as he continues to relax. "I haven't slept this much in years... I feel like I should be awake and productive. I swear, after I'm better, I'm not going to sleep for days." He grumbles quietly, yawning and then coughing a little. "Load up a movie for me, will you?" He asks hopefully.

With a small smile, James nods quietly, "You know, I hope you're not always going to be this demanding. When you're feeling better, I hope you give as good as your take." He notes with a little smirk, shaking his head again for a moment, gently finishing off the massage, wiping his hands off before he loads up a movie for Q, arranging the laptop so the younger man can see it, before he covers him with a blanket. "There you go.. relax and sleep. The rain is light enough now, I think I'll go out for a bit." he says as he goes to change into some sweats, throwing on a light jacket as well. By the time he's putting on trainers, Q is asleep and he smiles fondly at the young man, locking the door behind him before he starts to run in the slight drizzle, keeping to the paths.

It's two hours before Bond figures he's circled every road at the resort, but he doesn't want to wake Q up by going back just yet, so he stops at the main building. Handing a surprisingly dry bill to the bellhop who comes over with a towel, James smiles at the young boy before he dries himself off a bit, pulling off his jacket, thankful that he is somewhat dry underneath as he makes his way toward the bar. "Lovely weather you have here." he says with a little smile at the woman behind the bar as he sits down, towel draped around his neck, and he lays his jacket on the seat next to him. "You can charge the drinks to my room, can't you? I'm afraid I didn't exactly go out with money.." he says as he motions to his workout clothes.

"Of course, sir." The dark-skinned brunette behind the bar says with a little smile, her eyes flickering to his ring and then she adds, "I hope you and your wife are enjoying your stay."

Bond glances down at his ring and he smiles a little, fiddling a bit with it. "Husband, actually." he says as he looks up at the girl with a soft smile. "And we were enjoying ourselves for the first few days. Unfortunately he caught the flu before we left, I think, he's in an awful state, so I thought I would let him rest. I am, however, a rather.. active man." he says suggestively with a bit of a smirk, before he gives his martini order to the bartender.

The woman's demeanor changes slightly, and she gets a sympathetic look. "Oh, that's a terrible way to spend your honeymoon." When she gets a questioning look from James, she laughs softly, preparing the martini. "You can always tell the newlyweds. They aren't used to wearing the ring yet." She says as she motions toward his hand. "They're happy about it, just not used to it." She gives a small shrug, pouring his drink into a glass and slides it across the counter to the older man. "What's he like, your husband?" She asks conversationally as she starts to clean up a few things.

Taking a sip of the martini appreciatively, James considers for a few moments before he laughs softly. "Oh, that is quite a loaded question.." he says quietly, but there's already an affectionate note to his voice that makes it obvious he has deep feelings for his 'husband'. "Quentin is a complicated man." he says as he looks down into his glass, then up at the bartender. "We are complete opposites in some ways, but perhaps that's why I'm so fascinated by him. He's an honest-to-god, certifiable genius. He's got a sharp mind and a sharp tongue to go with it. Younger than I am, and easy to underestimate." he says as he takes another sip of his martini.

The young bartender giggles softly and she smiles. "They do say opposites attract, and you'd be surprised how much I see that sort of thing here." She says quietly as she considers it, tilting her head and brushing some hair behind her shoulder. "Is he handsome?" She asks, slightly playful.

James nods slowly, eyebrows going up for a moment. "Oh yes. He looks like his skin has never seen the sun, and it's soft. I wish he wouldn't hide his eyes behind his glasses all the time, but he objects to contact lenses. Still, when I do get those glasses off, he has the most beautiful green eyes. HIs hair is utterly ridiculous, long, but I could run my hands through it for hours, and every time he talks.." he trails off, eyes closing for a few moments. "His voice can go from cold and aloof to a warm drizzle of honey.." he sighs a little, realizing how very smitten he is with his quartermaster.

"You must love him very much. It's good, a lot of couples won't talk about their partner like that. I think you two could last." The bartender offers with another little smile as she looks at him for a few moments.

"I hope he knows what a lucky man he is."

* * *

**There's no harm in telling a stranger how you feel, right? At least for James. :D It's a good thing Q is asleep or he might be hacking video cameras to try and find James, and this might not look very good.**

**Next chapter will be cuteness, and Q being better! Or maybe more conversations with bartenders. I haven't decided.**

**I hope you are all enjoying this, let me know what you think!**


	22. Chapter 22

Trying not to laugh too much into his drink, James shakes his head for a few moments and looks at the bartender, glad that he's at least starting to dry out from his run earlier, though he will need a bit of a shower when he gets back to the bungalow. "Not as lucky as you might think. I have more than my fair share of faults and lets just say I had a rather colorful past when it came to relationships before." He says with a smirk over his drink at her. "I admit we even had a bit of a row about that a few days ago in the restaurant." He makes sure to keep in character and shakes his head sadly, even though he knows that the entire fight back then was fake, even if Q's insecurities about Bond's relationships are real.

The bartender just makes a doubtful noise before she chuckles a little, brushing her dark hair behind her shoulder slowly. "Well that's too bad, I wish I had met you before you met him, it sounds like you would have been very interesting.." She says with a bit more flirtatiousness in her tone than she had previously.

Alarm bells go off in James' mind, he knows this type of woman, and now that she knows he has been previously interested in women, not even him saying his husband has jealousy issues is enough to scare her off flirting. Slowly getting up off the stool, Bond nods a little. "In another life, perhaps. But not this one." He says very pointedly, leaving a tip before he grabs his jacket and slips it on, turning to head out of the bar and out of the main building, feeling the immediate desire to head back to his boffin, even if the younger man is sleeping.

The drizzle which stopped right before he went inside has resumed in a downpour, making Bond shake his head as he starts to run through the rain back toward the bungalow, removing jacket and shoes once he's under the overhang by the front door, socks quickly following. He manages to let himself into the little hut with a minimum of sound, noticing that the young man is still asleep, but the movie has been changed to something else. Was he really out that long? After glancing at the clock, James confirms that yes, he was indeed out that long, and silently makes his way to the shower to warm himself up, leaving the door open as both blatant invitation and so he can hear if Q has another one of his coughing fits.

By the time James comes out, he starts noticing that they're getting low on clothes, so gathers most of what he knows are dirty clothes into a laundry bag, calling up to the front desk to request a laundry service, also to make arrangements for an extended stay. Luckily because it is the rainy season they aren't exactly booked up and are more than happy to have someone stay longer in one of their more expensive rooms. He merely tells them to charge it to the card that they have on file, smirking as he imagines the look on M's face when he realizes that Bond and Q's vacation will be on MI6's dime. Let them take it out of his pay, he's never home long enough to actually enjoy his money anyway.

Finally, he moves out into the main room with the laundry bag, arching an eyebrow when he sees the brunette sitting up on the couch, wrapped in a blanket still, but long fingers tapping away at his laptop which has moved into his lap. "You're supposed to be resting." He points out as he drags the white bag over to the door and leans it against the wall beside it slowly.

"I am resting." Q shoots back without looking up from his laptop. "I had this lovely idea for a piece of tech that you may appreciate, I don't know why I didn't think of it before. Of course, I'll still have to work quite hard on it, this is something that may take years to develop, depending on how clever the R&D and myself are." He sighs a little, then shrugs one shoulder. "Or it may never work at all and may just be the result of the remnants of my fever. Either way, it's hardly strenuous to be typing on a computer while sitting immobile on a rather plush couch." Q points out as he finally glances up at the agent for a moment, before he looks back down at his laptop.

Intrigued but also wanting to see if any of Q's work needs to be saved before he tries to get the boffin off of his laptop, James walks over and sits down beside him, leaning over a bit to look at the screen. "So what is it, then?" he asks curiously.

Turning a grin to Bond as his fingers pause on the keyboard, Q seems rather triumphant. "A directed energy weapon, much more effective than a taser, and somewhat more contained. Same effect, at least for one of the settings at least. The power supply is the problem, as well as regulation, and as I said, it may take years but it would be highly useful. Especially if I can figure out a way where you won't have to reload the energy packs, it would make you less vulnerable to needing bullets. Not to mention less expensive if MI6 can stop buying so many bullets."

"What, you mean like a Phaser, from Star Trek?" The double-oh asks, eyebrows arching over startling blue eyes, his hair still damp from his shower which makes it look darker blonde, the way it might have when he was much younger, but years in the sun with little to no protection has lightened it a bit.

More than a little stunned at Bond's knowledge of popular culture, Q turns his head a little to stare at James. "You know what Star Trek is.. enough to be able to know a phaser is a directed energy weapon?" He asks, a little shocked as he stares at the older man, fingers completely stilling over the keys.

Rolling his eyes a little, James smirks, "I do spend quite a bit of time in hotel rooms before or after missions, and I am not always shagging someone, you know. I've been doing this of quite a while, so yes, I have become aware of that particular science fiction titan." He says with a little shake of his head, reaching out to take one of Q's hands in his own, briefly testing his pulse and the temperature of his skin, glad to know the fever has gone down, it's almost nonexistent now. He places a soft kiss on the inside of Q's wrist, hoping to distract him so he can snatch the laptop.

Giving a small sigh and lifting his free hand to adjust his glasses, Q watches his agent with a certain amount of amusement. "Honestly, James. Can you not keep your hands to yourself for ten minutes, or do you merely enjoy annoying me?" He asks as he looks at the man sitting next to him.

"Hmm. Perhaps a little of both. It's really not fair that you're so very attractive. I'm surprised none of your own department tried to make a move on you. You're a boffin's wet dream." Bond teases with a little smirk as he looks up at Q, kissing his wrist again gently for a moment, making as if he's going to lean over Q, but instead he snaps his laptop shut, never breaking eye contact.

Thankfully out of habit, Q had already saved his work, but he still gives Bond a rather miffed look. "That could have been important." He objects as he watches the older man. For a moment, he hesitates, then slowly leans over and places a soft, chaste kiss against the agent's lips, enjoying the sensation for a moment before he pulls back and merely just watches the man before him. "You are going to be so very distracting, aren't you?" He asks softly, chuckling lightly. "Am I going to have to ban you from Q branch in between missions?

"No." James says quietly, thrilled that Q initiated a kiss, he feels like he's been the one completely pursuing Q throughout this entire trip, and while the boffin has been responsive, he hasn't exactly pounced James. "Well, I might be a little distracting. I have to make sure your minions aren't getting the wrong idea, thinking they can hit on you or try and bribe you." he says with a little smirk as he watches the younger man, leaning in for another quick peck.

Shaking his head slowly, Q sighs a little. "You are incorrigible, James." he scolds lightly but there's an affectionate smile on his face all the same, putting his free hand on the middle of the agent's chest. "Mmm. No more kissing. We can't have you getting sick as well." he points out in a firm tone.

"You really do take some of the fun out of things." Bond says with a dramatic sigh, still holding Q's wrist in one hand, the other sneaking out to simultaneously pull the power cord out of Q's laptop, and snag it off the younger man's lap. "But you are still sick, so go back to resting." he says as he releases the brunette's wrist at last, standing with the laptop in hand casually as he tries to figure out where to hide it.

Jaw dropping a little in surprise as Bond nick's his laptop, Q frowns a little and then sighs. "Bond, give me back my laptop, that's very sensitive equipment." He says as he gets up as well, blankets falling away, making goose bumps rise over his skin as he holds out his hand demandingly for the laptop.

Seeming to be considering it for a few moments, James looks at the laptop, then shakes his head. "No. You need to rest. This is not resting." he says as he waves the laptop around a little.

Apparently having the flu reduces Q's response to things like this to that of a pre-pubescent, causing him to merely lunge for the laptop to try and snatch it back. "Give it back." he demands, trying to keep from sounding like a petulant child, though he doesn't quite manage it.

Highly amused by this childish side to Q that seems to have been brought out, the blonde agent keeps the laptop out of reach of his quartermaster, taking a few steps back. "I said no, Q. Now sit back down, and get some rest. I'll make you something to eat." He offers, trying to resolve this peacefully without resorting to petty bickering.

Q is not having any of that, though, he is looking more and more vexed, taking a few calm steps forward before he lunges once, then twice for the laptop, only to have James keep it out of reach each time. "James bloody Bond, give me my laptop!" He growls out in frustration.

Determined green eyes meet playful blue, and this time Bond dances back and away when Q reaches for the laptop. Just like that, two adults dissolve into children and into a game of keep-away. James movements are smooth and graceful as he keeps the laptop out of Q's reach, jumping around the coffee table before being backed toward the bedroom as the lanky Quartermaster stumbles and chases after the double-oh, trying to snatch back what's his. Of course, this leads them on a merry chase around the room, until a false step sends them both tumbling onto the bed, Bond managing to maintain his grip on the laptop so it's not harmed, grunting as Q lands partially on top of him, his free arm locked around the younger man's waist.

"Well now, isn't this an interesting situation to find ourselves in.." James teases as he looks up at the boffin, lifting his head to place a kiss at the corner of his lips, releasing the laptop where it is sitting on the other side of the bed to bring the hand down to fix Q's glasses.

Struggling to free his hands and get the under him a little so he's not got all his weight on Bond, Q gives him a disgruntled look. "This is all your fault, my laptop had better not be damaged." he grumbles, not even softening at the kiss at first. But finally, knowing he's probably not contagious anymore anyway, he turns his head and places a soft kiss on the firm lips of the agent beneath him, letting it linger for a moment. "That was not a very good way to get me to rest." he admits before he finally relaxes, adjusting his body so that he's a little more comfortable, allowing one hand to slide down, pulling the agent's shirt up a little before he starts to brush soft touches over his skin, tracing the scars slowly.

For a few moments, Bond isn't sure what to say, this new, tactile side to Q throwing him for a loop for a few moments. Then he just adjusts to the new position of his t-shirt, and continues to hold his quartermaster. "What's this? Giving yourself over to the Dark Side, Q?" he asks with a little smirk.

Of course, the Star Wars reference just sets Q to giggling, hiding his face against James's shoulder for a moment. "A Star Wars reference? Really, James?" He asks with a crooked grin as he lifts his eyes to the double-oh's, adjusting his glasses a little to be able to see him better. "Well, I suppose you are old enough to have seen the original run." he teases, relaxing and finding that he feels much happier than he has in quite a long while, and a part of him doesn't want to leave this haven that they have somehow formed here.

"I'm still wondering if we're violating child-labor laws by employing you. Imagine what your virgin eyes and ears must have seen and heard this past year." James says playfully in return, slowly releasing Q a little to trail his fingers up and down Q's side, enjoying the jump of his muscles under the agent's fingers.

Q just grunts a little and glances up at Bond. "If you had your way, nothing about me would be virgin." he points out with a slight smirk before he nestles back down against the other man, fingers sliding up under Bond's shirt a little more, finding the raised lines of his scars and touching each one, committing them to memory.

Making a little, noncommittal sound, James lowers his head and kisses Q's hair gently for a few moments. "Maybe." He mumbles into the dark curls. "Then again, this stage is always fun, too. The flirting, the playfulness..." he admits softly, not having been in enough solid relationships for it to ever really get much past the first shag. Even with Vesper, it never really settled past that stage.

Another small sound comes from the brunette, slightly muffled by Bond's shirt. "All of that doesn't disappear just because you've shagged, James. It can still be there, depending on the couple of course. You really aren't one for relationships, are you?" There's a smile in his voice, and he shifts to be more comfortable, giving a weak sort of half-cough.

"How many relationships have you had, then, my dear Quartermaster?" Bond challenges as he looks at the young genius, wondering what makes him such an expert on relationships, and at the same time he feels a flare of jealousy that anyone else would have been close to the younger man, to be intimate with him, that would have shared his most intimate, most secret moments. It's irrational, he's sure that Q has had relationships before, but that doesn't keep him from hating any of the others.

Another small noise from the now very relaxed man keeping James pinned to the bed while his fingers continue to make intoxicating patterns over his chest. "A few. Not as many as you might think. It might surprise you to hear, James, that I am no one's ideal man. Male or female, neither seem to take a particular interest in me. Usually has to do with my lean physique or the fact that I am what one might call a computer geek, through and through." Finally, he lifts his head to look at Bond for a few moments. "I had one serious boyfriend in Uni. Things went well, we were good together, the sex was great, we even thought about moving in together. Well, he started delaying that, putting off looking at flats. I found out later that he was shagging someone else. A very fit ballet dancer, actually. Apparently I was a little too gangly for him and a little too obsessed with my electronics and computers. That was in my second to last year of University. After that it just seemed like going out and attempting to flirt was too much of a bother." He says thoughtfully as he considers that. "I've been alone since then, it's been around three or four years now, I suppose." He says before he shrugs a little. And if he feels anything about that, loneliness, sadness, or anger, it doesn't show.

James frowns a little as watches the other man's face, lifting his hand to run it through his hair slowly. "I'm sorry you had to go through that, Q." he says honestly as he watches him, pulling him up a little so he can place a lingering kiss against his lips. "You are a gorgeous man." He reassures softly. "I wouldn't change a thing about you.. and considering your obsession with electronics and computers has saved my arse more than a few times, I think I bloody love that about you." he says with a small chuckle before just pulling the boffin close to him again. "I suppose that we have the advantage of already knowing the worst about eachother. Most of it, at least."

Tilting his head down a little to hide his face from James, Q rubs his cheek against the older man's chest for a moment in a very catlike motion. He feels the heat creeping up his cheeks and wants to hide it, embarrassed that the double-oh can make him blush so easily.

"One thing I did not know.. you're a very possessive cuddler when you're asleep."

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**Wow... super long chapter. I've sort of been working on this on and off all day and it ended up longer than I thought! Hope you all enjoy, and thank you to everyone who has commented/followed/favorited so far! You guys are so lovely. :)**

**As always, comments/reviews are welcome! Let me know what you think!**


	23. Chapter 23

"Possessive cuddler?" James asks with a skeptical arch of his eyebrow, not even sure what that term means but he has not actually slept beside enough people in intimate situations for them to find out anything like that about him. Still, he likes the fact that Q might know a few things about him that no one else does. It lends another level of intimacy to their relationship that Bond quite likes.

"Yes. When you're asleep, you've been wrapping yourself around me quite snugly, that is, not uncomfortably so. You just hold me close to you, as if you're afraid I'll escape. And if I do try and slip out, well.. you certainly don't allow that." he notes with a slight smirk as he glances up at James. "You try to keep me all to yourself. At least your unconscious mind does." he says thoughtfully with a small smile, pausing to fold both arms across the older man's chest, resting his chin on his folded hands so he can watch the agent's face, feeling rather happy, and relaxed at the moment.

Laughing softly as Q seems much younger than he is for a few moments, James smiles a little. "I suppose I just want to keep you close." he says softly as he brushing some fringe off Q's forehead, tucking his hair back a little. with a little smile, one finger stroking over the edge of his ear slowly. "Just look at you.." he says quietly with some awe to his tone.

A small snort escapes the younger man, and he lets out a soft cough before shaking his head slightly. "Well, you better relish the time you have, Mr. Bond. Because soon enough you will have to go chasing after terrorists or whatever other mission they decide you're perfect for." he says with a little sigh, tilting his head to the side a little. "Not that you'll be sleeping alone if you don't want to." he says quietly, gently shifting his arms to run two fingers slowly up Bond's collarbone from his neck toward his shoulder, before sliding across the top of his shoulder, curling his hand around Bond's nape, thumb stroking up his neck slowly, fascinated with the texture of his skin and feeling the strength of the muscle underneath.

"I suppose that depends on you, my dear Q." James says with a little smile as he looks at the other man curiously. "If I have you waiting for me, and in my ear, then why would I want another anonymous bed partner who isn't part of my mission?" he asks, running his hand through Q's hair again, enjoying the feel of it. "Perhaps you'll even deem it enjoyable to talk to me a bit after the mission is done and I have nothing to do but sit in my hotel room and wait for my flight." he says with a small smile. "That, combined with one of your clever cameras would be better than any standard video chat program, and more secure. I could think of some very interesting things to do with that." He offers as he watches the young genius, a slow grin spreading across his face.

Groaning with a little shake of his head, Q drops his head so his forehead rests against Bond's sternum. "You, Bond, are a bloody teenager. Can you think with anything else other than what's between your legs?" he asks, shaking his head for a moment, but he still laughs, lifting his head before sliding up James' body to look down into his eyes. "You are suggesting that I use MI6 technology for my personal gain.." He says thoughtfully, before he adds, "I will admit, it would be a pleasant way to wind down from missions, having a chat with you. Your missions tend to be rather stressful. Mostly because you don't do a thing I say."

James chuckles as he strokes Q's cheek gently for a few moments. "that's hardly fair." he notes as he looks at the younger man. "I do most of what you say. I enjoy hearing your voice in my ear during missions, especially when you get exasperated or flustered with me." He says with a slow grin, finally shifting and in a swift movement rolls them over so he's laying above Q, looking down at him and just admiring him, fingers tracing over his forehead, cheek, nose and chin gently, before he brushes his fingers over Q's lips. "We have a long time to be able to try out my other ideas." He says with a wink, lowering his head, kissing Q's nose and laughing at the thoroughly unimpressed face he makes, before James lowers his head further and brushes a few soft kisses against the brunette's soft lips, sighing contently.

A small whine of disappointment is given when the soft kisses stop, completely involuntary of course, making Q sigh a little as he looks up at James. "This is rather nice therapy, I believe better than chicken soup.." he says with a small chuckle, curling his hand around James' neck, stroking his fingers through the closely cropped hair, dragging his blunt nails across his scalp for a few moments, "I find this.. very restful.." He says with a slight smirk before he pulls James down for another few, soft kisses, before he sighs. "Perhaps we should readjust to lay properly on the bed?" He asks as he notices his feet are still hanging off the edge at an awkward angle.

Reluctant to give up his comfortable position, James sighs a little and nods, giving Q a soft kiss, before he gets up, grabbing the previously sought after laptop, putting it on the end table before he arranges the pillows, helping the brunette up to lay down before he pulls up the covers to the man's waist, moving to hover over him, slowly removing Q's glasses and setting them on the night stand. "There.." he says thoughtfully, brushing his fingers over Q's forehead, brushing the hair back from his face slowly.

A small squirm of his body and Q settles down into the mattress, looking up at Bond. "This is quite a comfortable bed." He observes, enjoying these gentle little moments because he knows that if he gives in, if he agrees to a relationship with James Bond, then there won't be many moments like this. Though he never dreamed when he agreed to this mission - or rather, was coerced into it - he's discovering that there is an entirely new side to the double-oh. One that can be caring, gentle, loving even. And very affectionate, something that has been sorely lacking in Q's life, and not something he even knew he missed until now. He thought he was self-sufficient and that he was alright with being alone, he never felt that he needed anyone else. And then Bond came along, and this bloody mission, and now the idea of going back to his flat to a cold bed every night, for the normal banter and flirtation between them to be gone, or worse, for it to be hollow and flat, makes it feel like it's hard for him to breathe and his heart is constricting in his chest. For a moment, he finds it hard to breath, one hand tightening where it rests on Bond's arm, the other on the back of his neck.

Looking more than a little concerned at the sudden change in Q, James cups the boffin's cheek for a moment. "Q? Q, are you alright?" he asks in concern as he looks into those slightly unfocused green eyes. It looks like he's starting to have a panic attack and Bond is not really sure what he said or did that might have caused it, or what might be going on in that brilliant mind of his.

After a moment where his vision whites out, Q finally focuses back on Bond and he nods quietly. "Yes.. yes, I'm fine." he says quietly, but his voice sounds a little breathless. He looks up at James with a slightly shocked expression on his face, his hand sliding from around the agent's neck to rest against his cheek as he looks up into those brilliant blue eyes.

"I can't go back to the way things were, James. I can't.. I don't know if I can live without this anymore."

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**Poor Q. Epiphanies hurt sometimes.**

**Thank you to everyone who is reading! Reviews/comments welcome!**


	24. Chapter 24

A little shocked by Q's words, James stares for a moment before he snaps out of it to try and soothe the young man below him who looks so vulnerable. "Shhh.. Q, it's ok.." He soothes, lowering his head a little to place a soft kiss on the younger man's lips. "I can't say that you won't ever have to live without me. We both know that my job is dangerous." he says quietly, looking down into the other man's green eyes. "You will have me as long as you want me, Q." He says softly, stroking the pale cheek of the man. "You don't have to go back to the way things were, if you don't want to." He reassures softly as he strokes a hand over the young genius' curls.

Q nods a little, still holding onto James' biceps firmly, and after a moment, he slips his arms up and around Bond's neck, pulling him down so their bodies are flush against each other and they can take comfort in his warmth, just clinging to him a little as he tries to get his mind in order, try to figure out how he's going to do this. "You don't understand, James.." he says quietly, closing his eyes for a few moments. "This scares me. So much." HIs hands tighten on the back of his shirt. "I trust you, please don't think I don't. But knowing what you do for a living, it scares me to think of losing you one day. Being with you scares with me. Giving my heart to you, scares me. I think you're being genuine, but they say that vacations like this are.. magical in some way or another. Bloody rubbish, but what if we return to London and the spell is broken, as it were?" he asks as he clings to James.

Sighing a little for a few moments, Bond adjusts his body to be more comfortable, then he kisses Q's neck and shoulder lightly. "I know. I'm here, Q. For as much or as little as you want, I'm here." He says quietly, shifting before rolling over onto his back, still holding the brunette close against him, stroking his back slowly and through his hair, kissing the side of his head lightly.

Trying to keep himself together, Q nods a little, shifting his hold on James when they roll over. "I know." he says quietly, taking a deep breath. "I've just become accustomed to being alone. And being content with being independent, not thinking about anyone else's wellbeing except my own when it comes to my personal life. Of course, at work I have to worry about R&D, my minions, you and the other double-oh's in the field.. I worry about a great many people. It's exhausting. I've always thought I enjoyed my solitude when I got a chance to go home to my flat, I never thought that I would crave someone being there with me, again." He says quietly as he nuzzles into the agent's neck a little, squirming just a bit to slide down his body and get more comfortable, slowly closing his eyes. "To know that I need someone again, that I don't want to come home to an empty flat anymore, it's frightening. Not only for the loss of my privacy - because I know you, James Bond. If allowed, you would be searching every corner of my flat, curious about everything I have there - but there is also the loss of my independence, to a point. Oh, I know you won't always be there, but I also know that you have a very commanding presence, so when you are there, no doubt you would want all of my attention." He points out, closing his eyes and letting out a little sigh.

Considering all of this for a few moments, James sighs, "I don't do relationships very well." he says quietly as he holds Q. "And I don't know what to say right now. I am not going to give you false promises." He says quietly, considering for a few moments. "I don't know what kind of a man I would be in a relationship. Bloody hell, I've never been in one, not really." He says as he slowly strokes his hand up and down Q's back, rubbing the back of his neck lightly. Something occurs to him though, and he chuckles softly. "My dear Q.. did you just ask me to move in with you?" He asks playfully, having just realized he talked about not going home to an empty flat.

Feeling the heat of embarrassment creep up his neck and into his cheeks, Q clears his throat a little. "Well, that's not precisely what I meant, James." He says, tilting his head to hide it from the agent's view. "However, it wouldn't necessarily be.. unpleasant for you to be there." He admits, shifting a little so he can rest one hand on the older man's chest, one hand making little designs on his chest idly as he considers it. "I think it would be better if we see if this can work.. when we get back to London and back to work. It is rather idyllic here, afterall." His voice remains quiet, and after a few moments, the younger man slowly lifts his head and looks up to James' face.

Looking down into those green eyes, James can't help but smile a little, running his hand through the younger man's hair. "As always, dear Q, you're right. Though I wouldn't mind spending every morning of my leave waking up with you in my arms." He says quietly, lifting his head and leaning in to kiss him tenderly for a few moments.

The kiss is returned and Q finally pulls away, yawning a little and murmuring, "I hate being sick.." He grumbles, giving another soft, weak cough, though at least he doesn't have the hacking coughing fits he had a day or two ago. "We should finish this conversation another time." He says with a little shake of his head, before he shifts to slide off of where he was laying on James. "You should find something to do.. I'm going to try and sleep some more.." He grumbles softly.

For a moment, James doesn't let Q get away, he just leans down an gives him a light kiss, before releasing him and sitting up slowly, tucking Q in. "Sleep well." he says softly, clearing anything else off of the bed so that if Q rolls over he won't knock anything off, including his beloved laptop.

Q pays close attention to where that laptop goes before he removes his glasses and puts them aside, curling himself up in the blankets. "Do try not to cause any international incidents while I'm gone, Bond." he says with a little smirk before he nuzzles into one of the pillows, stretching in a somewhat catlike manner before curling up a little. As he drifts off to sleep, the rain stops and the sun peeks out from behind the clouds in the first time in days, finally warming the air and at least attempting to dry the less saturated surfaces.

James smiles a little as he looks over at Q, nodding. "Anything for you, Q." He teases before he steps out of the bedroom closing the door behind him slowly, after taking the chance to look at the boffin one last time where he's quickly drifted off to sleep.

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**I feel a bit guilty for not updating this yesterday, but I woke up with a head cold and my body decided I was going to go to bed a few hours early, whether I liked it or not! :) So here is this chapter, now finished, and I hope to get one up for my Sherlock story as well here shortly. :D**

**Please let me know what you think, Reviews/comments welcome!**


	25. Chapter 25

When Q finally wakes, he's alone, which doesn't surprise him that much. He sits up, puts his glasses on and then heads out into the main area, glancing around for a few moments but it's obvious to him that he's alone. The sun is out though and so he opens the doors wide, taking some juice, water and fruit out onto the balcony to eat. At least he's getting plenty of vitamins from the fruit he's had during this trip. Of course, he soon gets bored and heads back inside in search of his laptop, finding his phone as well, he checks the time before he decides to check in with his branch.

"Q-branch, R here." The young man answers the phone, the sounds of computers and keyboards in the background showing that it's going to be a late night in Q-branch, probably some big mission going on.

With a little sigh, Q sips the tea he just made, a part of him wishing he was in the middle of whatever was going on. "It's Q." He says simply. "Just checking in, wanting to make sure you didn't burn down or blow up the place yet." he says in his casual tone, shifting the phone away as he coughs a little.

R sounds more than a little surprised, but slightly relieved. "Q! Good to hear from you, we thought you were supposed to be back by now. Are you alright?" He asks in concern. R is older than Q, but has always been supportive of his boss, a little bit of a brown-noser maybe but he's good at managing the minions and managing the paperwork that doesn't need to go to Q in order to help his boss keep his work load down as much as possible.

"Yes, I'm quite alright." Q reassures, then adds, "Just caught a bit of a bug. I have been forced to take some time off while I get better." He explains as he logs into the systems. "Anything going on that I need to know about?" he asks casually as he checks things over in the system.

A small chuckle from R. "Trust you to get sick during a mission, Q. Much less a mission to such a beautiful place." He shakes his head even though his boss can't see him. "We've got a few agents in the field, a few things between minor and major, nothing for you to worry about, nothing I can't handle." He explains quickly in a confident tone.

"Mmm. I see. I'm in the systems now. Remind me to work on upgrading the firewalls when we get back, I bet I didn't even set off any alerts when I slipped in, did I?" Q says with a disapproving tone, tsking softly and shaking his head for a few moments as he listens to his subordinate. "It looks like I'll be out of the office for another few weeks, as I said, I've been forced into a vacation, with Bond as my keeper." He tries to sound annoyed and not as pleased as he is about that situation.

R can't help but laugh a little. "Well, I look forward to lots of interesting stories about your escape attempts, sir." he says with amusement, but he sounds a little distracted for a moment. "Bring me back a nice souvenir. Is there anything else I can do for you, sir?" He asks politely, but he does have a few other things going on at the moment.

Reluctant to go just yet because he would like someone familiar to talk to that is not James bloody Bond, Q sighs a little. "I'll bring you back a kitschy snow globe." he jokes lightly with a smile, then adds, "There isn't anything else, I just wanted to check in and make sure the branch was not burning down in my absence. That would look a bit bad on my record. But it seems that everything is under control, in your capable hands. Call me if you have any problems."

"Of course, sir. But I think I've got it all under control here. I'll give you a ring if anything comes up. Enjoy your vacation, sir." R says politely with a little hint of amusement to his tone, the clacking of keys never stopping.

Q snorts a little, and even sounds a little petulant. "Don't do my job too well, R, I am not through with it yet." he says in a firm tone, tapping away at his own keyboard. "Q signing off." he says before he turns his phone off, sighing as he dives into a little bit of code on his computer.

Slipping silently into the room while Q is still on the phone, James shakes his head a little. "I hope that wasn't boffin flirting." He says in a wary tone, watching the way Q jumps. "You really need to be more aware of your surroundings." he says before he walks over and sits down beside the younger man, turning the brunette's head toward him to give him a tender, yet possessive kiss.

"Mmm.. I most certainly was not flirting with R." Q says with a small shake of his head. "He is my subordinate. We work together." he says before he looks away from James, focusing back on his computer as he finishes a few lines of code, then saves it and starts to shut it down, figuring that Bond won't let him do much work anyway now that he's back. "Just because you are constantly flirting with everyone does not mean that I am the same." he says simply as he focuses on his laptop, sighing a little before he slowly closes the lid.

Leaning in and slowly kissing his neck slowly, James hmms softly against the younger man's skin. "Good. I do not like the idea of you flirting with anyone else. I realize that is hypocritical. But I don't care. It's how I feel. The idea of you flirting with anyone else, fake or real, makes me very jealous." he admits, sharply nipping at Q's neck, then again, watching the little red marks start to bloom on the pale skin in front of him.

Since he's feeling a bit better than he was, Q decides to enjoy the attention, stifling a groan as he closes his eyes and tilts his head up and to the side a little, exposing more of his skin. "You really are incorrigible." He mutters softly, considering and taking a deep breath. "That does feel lovely, though." he decides to admit, putting his laptop aside and putting his feet on the coffee table, stretching himself out a little bit.

"It does, does it?" James asks with an obviously pleased tone in his voice, but at the same time he feels elated that Q isn't fighting him. Instead of saying anything further, he leans in and kisses Q softly, then kisses his way down to the boffin's neck again, placing soft kisses down the length of that long neck, nipping and sucking lightly at the skin. None of it has a particular goal of seduction, mostly just wanting to make his partner feel good at the moment, also learning what exactly Q likes. Finally, with a soft nip at the nape of his neck, James lifts his head and places a sweet, soft kiss on Q's lips. "Bloody gorgeous.." he mutters against the boffin's lips.

Q relaxes and enjoys the attention, taking one of James' hands in his own, giving it a little squeeze before he starts to laugh softly, opening his eyes finally to look into the clear blue eyes of the man beside him.

"Perhaps I should have your eyes tested when we get back, James, obviously you're having some problems seeing correctly."

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**Random R stuff. I don't know why I wrote this scene, I guess I just figured that since Bond had been talking to Moneypenny so much, Q should have someone to talk to, too! And since I was watching Torchwood while writing this, the R in my head now speaks with Ianto's voice. I should know better than to watch other British TV shows while writing this. :D**

**Hope you all enjoy this little scene, I'm trying to figure out what to do next, but I am sure I will think of something.**

**Please let me know what you think! Reviews/comments welcome!**


	26. Chapter 26

Not being able to help himself, James laughs a little as he looks at Q, dipping his head to give him a light kiss again. "My eyes are better than yours, Q." He says playfully with a slight grin before he leans back. "Come on.. you've been trapped in here for days, let's go for a walk, just a little way." He says before he slowly gets up, taking Q's hand and hauling him to his feet. "Go get some decent clothes on." He practically orders before he smirks at the younger man.

Q allows himself to be pulled up, before he sighs a little. "I suppose that does sound rather nice now that the sun has come out.." He says before he sighs and makes his way into the bedroom, not caring about whether or not Bond sees him changing at this point, so he quickly changes into some comfortable pants and a light, long-sleeved shirt, sliding his feet into sandals in case they go down to the beach before he comes back out, running a hand through his hair. "Come on, then." he says as he puts his room key in his pocket with his phone, and steps out the door, hand shielding his eyes for a few moments as he squints up toward the sun, then waits for James.

After cleaning a few things up in the main room and making sure things like guns and laptops are hidden away, James enjoys the view of watching the brunette change, smirking as he follows him out the front door, making sure it locks behind them before he reaches out and takes Q's hand in his own. "Come on.. we won't go far, maybe we should just head up to the main building and get you something to eat." He offers, giving his hand a little squeeze before he starts to head in that direction, keeping it to a casual stroll because he's not sure how much energy the other man might have at the moment since he's technically still recovering.

Following the older man's lead, Q can feel the fatigue in his muscles from just this much movement, but he puts on a brave face, tangling their fingers together and resting his free hand on Bond's bicep. But after a little while walking like this, Q smirks a little and releases the older man's hand, sliding his arm around the blonde's waist so he can be closer to him, his hand resting along the edge of James' jeans, fingers hooking around one of his belt loops.

Laughing a little, Bond grins and drapes his arm across the boffin's shoulders, pulling him close. "Should I be grateful that you didn't take the liberty of putting your hand in my back pocket?" he asks playfully as he leans toward the brunette a little, continuing their steady pace.

"Well, I thought that might be a bit presumptuous, such an openly sexual display, even if we are married.. You do have a rather spectacular arse." Q says casually, taking a deep breath of the fresh air, allowing himself to lean into Bond for a moment, before he lifts his free hand and joins hands with Bond briefly, their rings brushing against eachother, and it makes the brunette smile as he feels the friction of metal on metal.

James smirks a little and then nods, "Well, that's true. Besides, there is only one time I'd enjoy you grabbing my arse, and that would just be to urge me on.." he says quietly in Q's ear, enjoying the way the younger man's skin starts to turn pink. "You know, I've almost gotten used to wearing this ring.." he says quietly, giving Q's hand a squeeze, looking over at their joined hands. "I never thought I would be able to say that.." he says quietly, not wanting to elaborate because he doesn't know who might be watching or listening. "I forgot to ask.. how are you feeling, love?" He asks, falling more into the doting and loving husband role.

"I'm still weak.. but the fresh air is very nice." Q admits, taking the cue and getting back into character as it were. He leans against Bond a little more and then smiles softly. "And at least I can be closer to you, now. I'm sorry I ruined part of our honeymoon by getting sick, love." He says with a little sigh, shaking his head slowly. "It must have been sneaking up on me for days.."

Squeezing Q against his side gently for a few moments, James nods slowly, kissing the brunette's temple as they get within sight of the main building of the resort. "I told you, you work too hard. You should be coming home from the office much earlier.." he scolds lovingly, before he adds, "Lets get you something to eat. Need to get your strength up so we can thoroughly enjoy the rest of our honeymoon." He says suggestively with a little grin, deliberately saying that when a few of the staff are walking by.

Ducking his head as a blush spreads across his cheeks, Q pinches Bond's side and shakes his head. "James." He scolds as he peeks up at the older man, then gently releases his hand when they get close enough to the building that he knows they're going to have to release eachother.

"What?" Bond ass innocently, keeping his arm around Q slightly as he opens the door for him and gently propels him through it, leading the boffin over to one of the window booths in the corner, sitting beside him instead of across from him, so he can lay his arm around the back of the booth and thus behind the younger man's shoulders, thanking the waitress and then opening the menu in front of them.

Maybe it's not genuine, but Q doesn't see anything wrong with playing up his fatigue a little bit, and he sighs, eyes sagging closed a little as he shifts to lean into Bond, resting his head on the more muscular shoulder of his 'husband'. "Mmm.. I would just make you order for me, but paying attention to what I eat has never been your strength." He teases with a small smile, before he hefts himself forward to look down at the menu for a few moments, deciding what he wants, he sits back again and rests his head back against Bond's arm, eyes closing for a few moments.

"I have a surprise for you, Quentin.. I wanted to wait until you were feeling a bit better so you didn't have to worry..." James says slowly as he looks over the menu, waiting until he sure he has Q's attention. "We'll be staying another week or so.. I already cleared it with your work, and your friend from work, Eve, said that she would take care of everything until you get back.." He says with a little smirk as he watches Q.

It is a little harder than it should be, but people could always blame his sickness for the moment it takes before Q's face registers surprise. "James.." he says slowly before he smiles happily, snaking one arm around Bond's neck to hug him, placing a quick, chaste kiss on his lips and blushing afterwards. "Thank you.." He says with another smile, before he goes back to his previous position in his seat. "I'm glad our honeymoon won't be ruined by me, afterall. We can do everything we wanted to.. if the weather holds."

James chuckles and returns the hug before he smiles slowly, looking Q over slowly, "Mmmm. And if the weather doesn't hold, I can think of something to keep us occupied.." he says in a low tone, but says it just about the time the waitress comes over. Waitresses always have the most interesting timing, James notices.

While Q turns a pretty shade of pink, the waitress is used to hearing things like that and so she simply laughs softly as she looks at the two. "Are you ready to order?" She asks with a little smile, taking the orders when the two men give them before she says, "You two are so cute together.. I'll be right back with your drinks." She offers before she moves away.

Still blushing a little, Q gives James a half-hearted glare. "Keep your comments to yourself, James. Bloody hell, you're going to kill me with embarrassment." He scolds as he leans his head back against the agent's arm.

"You cannot die from embarrassment, no matter what people might say." James says with a soft smile, admiring Q and leaning over to kiss his cheek softly. "I'm sorry, darling." he sticks the affectionate term in there playfully. "I am trying to behave myself, I know how you don't like everyone to know our private life, but I can't help myself sometimes." He says quietly, sounding almost as if he's afraid that his companion might be angry with him.

Feeling a little indulgent, Q tilts his head over onto James's shoulder again and he smiles s little. "It's alright, James.." he says quietly, resting one of his hands on James' thigh under the table, the gesture seeming practiced and casual as he gives it a little squeeze. "I knew what I was getting into when I married you." He says with a little laugh, opening his eyes to look up into the piercing blue ones that are trained on his face. When he sees the waitress starting to come back around with the drinks, he smiles a little. "I love everything about you.." he says as he lifts his hand an lays it against James' cheek. "Even if you do exasperate me sometimes, but it would be boring otherwise." He teases, leaning up and placing a light kiss on the blonde's lips, blushing lightly as he finally sits back, but his hand remains on James' thigh.

The waitress just smiles a little at them as she puts their drinks on the table. "I'm sorry.. I don't mean to pry.. but.. You two are newlyweds, right?" She asks, hugging the tray to her chest for a moment. "It's just.. we get a lot of honeymooners here, but you two look like you've been together for a while. Most of the ones we see here are still in the stage where they make puppy eyes at eachother. But you two are more comfortable with eachother.." She trails off, putting her hand against her cheek. "Oh, gosh, I'm so sorry, this must seem awfully rude.." She gushes apologetically.

Trying not to focus on the hand on his thigh, James looks at Q for a moment, then up at the waitress. "It's not rude at all, it's flattering, thank you.. But we've only known eachother for about a year. From the very start we had a connection, though. It just grew from there." He explains with a little smile.

Q is embarrassed and he curses his pale complexion, ducking his head a little to look down at his lap, his hand squeezing Bond's thigh gently again. Finally, he peeks up at the two and sighs when James stops talking. He can't help but grumble a little, slightly grumpy about the cute, nosy waitress.

"Though sometimes it feels like bloody forever."

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**Slightly delayed, but here is another chapter! Finally, Q is feeling better and the weather is cooperating. Poor Q will get back at Bond for the embarassent, I'm sure. I hope everyone is enjoying this, I hope I can get lots more done, I really do love this story. :)**

**Please let me know what you think, reviews/comments are welcome, I love seeing them in my inbox!**


	27. Chapter 27

To most people, if they talk to a couple and one of the pair looks decidedly unhappy about the topic of conversation, they would try and steer it to another subject or leave the couple alone altogether. But apparently James Bond puts out an air that he wants people to talk to them, and of course monopolizes attention so that people do not pay as much attention to the curly-haired brunette under his arm. And this is something that Q is learning annoys him quite a bit, especially since the person ignoring him is Bond's 'usual' type. And while he would be ok if Bond were out on a mission and had to seduce a mark, he is not ok with it when he is sitting right there. Flirting is not necessary for this mission, and since his input is not required, he sharply pulls his hand away from Bond and turns his head to look out the window, intent on ignoring the two.

The waitress just laughs a little at Q, as if he were some adorable, but dumb pet or kid. "He is adorable, I can see what you must have seen in him when you two met." She says toward Bond, finding him the more attentive and attractive of the two. She knows they're married, but flirting often gets her bigger tips, and it's obvious to her that Bond swings both ways as it were. "Wow, only a year and married, that's not much time.. I mean, I'm sorry, that sounds awful.. I just meant, it's great that you guys had such a connection, that you knew you wanted to spend the rest of your life together after so little time. What made you come here?" She asks curiously as she motions around curiously.

For a moment James looks over at Q, not exactly sure what happened to cause such a reaction from the younger man, but it's obvious even to the double-oh that the brunette is in a strop about something. But then the waitress is talking again and he smiles politely as he looks at her, considering her for a few moments and putting a few things together. "We wanted to get away from London, far enough away that we couldn't be called into work.. and I thought Quinton could use some sun." He says with a little smile, stroking his thumb along the brunette's neck for a moment, briefly frowning when the younger man pulls away from the touch and sits forward on the table a little. With a small sigh, James realizes he needs to get rid of the waitress. "I'm sorry, it was lovely to talk, but we are rather hungry, and Quinton has just gotten over a cold so I don't want to keep him out too long." He says as he glances toward the kitchen door, then back at the waitress.

"Oh, of course! I'm so sorry.." The waitress says with a little laugh, "I'll put this order right in." She reassures as she turns and heads back toward the office.

"If she's sorry, I'm a bloody walrus." Q grumbles, shifting away from James a little. And yeah, he's sulking, and blowing things out of proportion, but he's still feeling a little insecure about everything. And the realization that maybe he's been a little unfair has him looking down at the top of the table before he reaches out for the tea that he had ordered, taking a slow sip of it before staring down into it.

Once the waitress is out of ear shot, James turns more fully toward Q, watching him for a few moments. "Are you going to tell me what's wrong, or do I have to guess?" He asks, voice sharper than he means it to be, and he regrets it when he sees the younger man's wince, shoulders drawing forward a little. Instead of retracting his question, he reaches out slowly, and rests his hand between Q's shoulder blades, relaxing a little when the boffin doesn't pull away from him, and instead he rubs a small circle on the man's back.

Sighing a little, Q puts both hands around his mug of tea, then he shakes his head, glancing over his shoulder at the agent for a moment. "It's nothing for you to worry about, James. My own issues. But I'm not terribly hungry anymore, perhaps you could get one of those takeaway boxes for my food." He is not regretting them sitting on the same side of the booth with him trapped between the window and Bond. "Please let me out, James." he says as he sits back, not looking at Bond, just waiting to be allowed out of the booth.

"Oh, no." James says with a shake of his head. "No, you're going to tell me what that was about, I'm not letting you run away. I need to know what happened, this is going to be bloody hard enough without you lying to me." He says, sliding his arm around Q's waist and pulling the younger man close to his side, turning himself in the booth so he's looking at the boffin more closely. He leans in slowly, kissing the side of his head, then tilting his head slowly and leaning in to kiss his neck softly and gently nuzzle against him.

A small sound comes from the young brunette, in the back of his throat, before he slumps a little against James. He closes his eyes and sighs, but doesn't object to the attention. "I'm just.. being insecure." He admits, making another frustrated noise. "I am not a bloody 15 year old girl. I shouldn't let something so simple affect me." He mutters, before he turns to looks over at James. "To clarify, I do not have a problem with what you'll have to do on missions." He says in a firm tone as he looks at the older man. "I suppose I am a little resentful and perhaps a little jealous when it is happening when I'm sitting directly beside you. And we are bloody married." He says in a soft tone so that they can't be overheard, looking down at his hands.

Bond sighs a little as he puts both arms around Q for a moment before he lifts one hand and lays it against the younger man's cheek, leaning in and giving his lips a soft, tender kiss. "Q.." he whispers softly afterwards. "You're going to have to explain to me why someone as gorgeous and sexy as you can be so insecure when it comes to how attractive you are, yet so confident in every other part of your life." He says quietly, thumb stroking over the pale skin of his 'husband'. "Not until we get someplace more private, though." he says softly, giving Q a little squeeze, before he leans in and gives him a few more soft, reassuring kisses, using his considerable experience with providing physical comfort of all kinds to help calm down his boffin.

For a few moments, Q allows himself to relax, forgetting where they are, he simply leans into James and responds in kind to the kisses, one hand resting in the middle of the agent's chest, bracing himself to keep him from falling over into the older man's lap. "Fine. I'll explain it later." He says quietly, refusing to believe he sounds at all mollified by the kisses or the attention in general. Of course, he remembers where they are, and he blinks a few times, slowly turning a startling shade of pink as he leans back away from James, looking away from him and folding his hands almost primly in his lap.

Disappointed when Q pulls away from him, James doesn't make to stop him, keeping one arm around him though. When the waitress returns, he looks apologetic. "I'm sorry.. could we get this boxed up to take back to our room? Quinton isn't feeling very well again, and I'd really like to get him back." he says as he strokes the younger man's side slowly.

The waitress blinks a few times, and even though she might be a little put out, she smiles sympathetically and nods. "Yeah, of course. I hope you feel better, Quinton." She says to the pink-faced man before she turns to head back to the kitchen.

After they get their food in a plastic bag, James slips out and takes Q's hand in his, giving it a little squeeze as they step out of the restaurant and head back toward their room, remaining silent on the way there. When they arrive, he takes the food out and puts it on the coffee table, getting them both bottles of water, while Q does a sweep of the room for bugs since it's the first time since the night of the mission that they have both been out of the room at the same time.

"Clear." Q says afterwards, taking one of the bottles of water from Bond before he sits down, only to be immediately pulled up against the double-ohs side. He only sighs and shifts a little so that he can lean more comfortably around the other man, toeing the sandals off beside the couch before he picks up his food and eats slowly.

Before eating, James turns on some quiet music, remaining silent throughout the meal. When he notices Q is done, he puts his box down and takes the one from the young boffin, putting them aside on the coffee table. "Alright, Q.. Time to tell me why you don't seem to realize how ridiculously attractive you are. I understand why you may be insecure about my feelings toward you. I get that." He says as he runs his hand through Q's hair slowly, then runs it down over the soft skin of his neck, manhandling him around a bit until they're facing each other a bit more comfortably. "Tell me the rest." He says softly, before he places a few more soft kisses on those tempting lips.

Q hums a little through the kisses, enjoying them and resting his hand along Bond's kiss as he lets them linger for a few moments, not wanting to explain but knowing that he has to. Finally, he leans back a little from James and sighs, removing his glasses to rub at his eyes. "As you've so often observed, James, I easily fit into the category of boffin, nerd, geek, whichever phrase that you wish to apply for it. I have always been like this. Even in school. You were relatively popular in school, into sport I imagine. I was not. I do hope you weren't too cruel to the less popular in your school, I would be most disappointed. Let us just say that being bisexual or gay in my school was also a black mark against you. I do not have the dating record that you do, James. I have had very few partners in my life, though I am not wholly inexperienced. However, I had more than one cruel experience during school and University which led to me being the man you see before you." he glosses over the worst of it, not wanting to go into the details but assuming that Bond will get the general gist of it. And because he's still feeling a little tired, he cuddles down against the strong chest of the agent, putting his glasses aside so he can nuzzle down into the man's neck, feeling a little clingy and cuddly at the moment.

Not seeming to mind, James listens and he nods quietly. "Yes, I was rather popular in school." he admits with a little chuckle as he remembers all the skirts he chased and got into, honing his charming skills even then. Sliding both arms around the younger man, James holds him close. "I see." He says slowly as he takes in the new information, incorporating that into what he already knows about Q. It does make him feel a bit good when the genius seems to seek comfort from Bond by cuddling in so close, so James just pulls him close, stroking his back slowly and then sliding one hand up under his shirt to stroke the soft skin of his back. "I wish I could explain to you how I see you, Q. How you've spoiled me. I've had dreams, God, such dreams about you, the kind I haven't had since I was a teenager. And some scenarios that I very much hope we can explore one day." he teases with a small grin, kissing the side of his head. "You've quite snuck up on me since that day at the National Gallery, Quartermaster." he says softly with a smile, shifting a little to pull Q's head up, looking into those gorgeous eyes before he places another lazy, slow kiss on his lips.

This whole conversation has left the young genius feeling rather vulnerable, which makes him cling to the affection a little bit, allowing the kiss to develop into a proper snogging session after he shifts to get slightly more comfortable. But soon the lazy kisses turn a little less lazy, and deepen. Bond taking the initiative and pressing Q back against the couch which the brunette doesn't object to at first, at least until the first brush of James' tongue against his lips, and then he realizes that he really ought to stop this before he leads James on, so he braces both his hands on the agent's chest, flexing his fingers and enjoying the feel of that for a moment before he applies pressure.

As soon as he feels Q starting to push him away, James pulls away from the kiss, breathing deeply as he looks down into the slightly unfocused green eyes of the man below him. "What is it, Q?" he asks softly, licking his lips as he uses his amazing self restraint to keep from just diving in for another kiss and ravishing his mouth.

For a few moments, Q just breathes, closing his eyes and arching his back briefly to get more comfortable before he settles down, licking his lips and finally looking up at James. "As much as I enjoy a good snog, and as much as you have proven your skill in that area, you are going to have to have to work a bit harder if you want more than a snog form me." He says in his best haughty tone, which isn't that great, but he is trying to keep himself from shagging James senseless. Slowly, he lifts his head and places another soft kiss on James' lips. "Lets go for a swim." he offers softly, then he grins a little. "And you can show me how good a Navy boy takes to water." He offers playfully, though is still trapped by James above him.

A small groan comes from James when he hears those words coming from lips that, at the moment, he wants nothing more than to return to and ravish thoroughly. "Bloody hell, Q, you're going to kill me.." he groans as he drops his head down against the younger man's shoulder for a moment. At the challenge however, James grins slowly. "Oh, just you wait.." he says with a little laugh, kissing him firmly for a moment before he pulls away and gets up, stretching a little. "We should change, then.." he says as he pulls his shirt off over his head, looking down at Q with a small smirk before he saunters off to the bedroom, already undoing his pants, not caring if Q watches or not.

Putting his glasses back on so he can enjoy the view, Q turns to watch Bond walk away, enjoying the play of the strong muscles under his skin, feeling his palms itch with the desire to touch and explore. 'And he says I'm trying to kill him', he thinks to himself as he slowly gets up to follow.

* * *

**Vulnerable Q. Will he ever be confident with Bond in public? I think James needs to work on his confidence in private first. ;) Don't worry, Q will get some of his confidence back and get revenge on James for embarrassing him in public. :D**

**Hope everyone is still enjoying this! There is something about Q and Bond I am still loving writing. So much so that I am going to be posting the start to yet Another OOQ fic soonish, called When the Dust Settles, please check it out!**

**Reviews/comments encouraged, and very, very welcome! Thank you!**


	28. Chapter 28

Once they're both changed, and after Q tries very hard not to stare at Bond too much and pus in his contacts, he heads out toward the stairs, letting James grab the towels for them both. "I do hope the water hasn't cooled down too much from the rain." he says thoughtfully as he slowly descends the stairs to the platform below where he can slip into the water.

Following Q down toward the water, James puts the towels within easy reach, then he smirks as he watches the younger man look down at the water almost with trepidation. "Shall we?" He asks before he dives smoothly into the clear blue water, gliding down before he changes direction and surfaces to look up at the gangly man, ice blue eyes sliding over him slowly and admiring his form.

"Not all of us are that graceful." Q says simply before he lowers himself down and slides into the water, gasping a little since while it's warm, it's still cooler than the ambient air temperature. He soon relaxes though and he smiles a little as he looks at Bond. "What?" he asks as he sees the other man staring at him.

Swimming back a little, Bond watches Q slide into the water, the way his hair starts to get damp around the edges, sticking to his neck. "Nothing, Q." he says innocently, then smiles a little. "You should wear contacts more often. Your eyes are wonderful." He says quietly as he moves closer to the other man.

A small snort comes from the brunette, and he moves back from James as he approaches, a small smirk quirking the corner of his lips. "Contacts bother me when I wear them for extended periods of time. Not to mention my glasses protect me from the glare of my laptops." he says simply as he watches the older man approach, trying to swim backwards at the same speed, but he's not nearly as good of a swimmer as James is.

Noticing he's not making much progress on top of the water, James decides to take another tactic and he smirks before diving under the water, swimming toward a confused Q before he reaches out to grab one of his feet, pulling the younger, surprised man under the water. Once he's under, he grabs Q's waist to pull him down a little further, kissing him before allowing them both to surface, laughing a little as he helps Q to push his hair away from his face to look less like a drowned rat.

"Bloody hell, James!" Q splutters a little, trying to give the blonde an annoyed look, but it comes out a more affectionately amused than annoyed. Finally, he runs a hand through his now wet hair and shakes his head a little. "You are at least part fish. No wonder you joined the Navy." He says as he swims back away from the other man suspiciously, running a hand over his face to wipe some water off of it.

Looking more smug with himself than he had any right to, James approaches Q again, grabbing him around the waist and dragging their bodies together, being more than capable of keeping them both afloat. "Oh, no.. you're not getting away yet.." He says with a little laugh. "Perhaps I should have warned you, but I have always loved swimming.. and I've always found swimming with a partner to be.. enjoyable.." he murmurs softly, dipping his head a little to kiss along Q's jaw, nipping at his skin lightly, licking away some droplets of water while he slides his hand up the other man's back, spread out just below his shoulder blades.

Groaning a little as he surrenders momentarily and tilts his head back, Q sighs as his eyes close for a moment. "James.." He says in a slightly warning tone, letting him proceed for a few more moments before he puts a hand on James' chest and pushes himself away. "Your libido is getting the better of you." He teases before he chuckles a little. "Consider this a lesson in celibacy." He says as he moves back far enough to dive under the water and around the older man, not as graceful or powerful as Bond, but he's always been a good swimmer, able to hold his breath for a long period of time as well. For a few moments he swims, not able to reach the bottom, before he arcs up back out of the water. Of course, trying to hold his breath may not have been the best idea, and as soon as he takes a breath, he starts a coughing fit, a little bit of water splashing back into his mouth which just makes it worse.

Disappointed and frustrated but watching Q with interest, James immediately starts to swim toward the sick man when he starts coughing, looping one arm around his waist and laying him back in the water. "This was a bad idea.. Relax, Q.. just relax.." He says as he swims backward toward the dock while gently holding onto the younger man, finally grabbing onto the dock and just holding him, head resting beside the brunette's gently.

When the coughing finally stops, Q just takes slow, deep breaths, closing his eyes for a few moments and resting his head back against James's shoulder as he floats there on his back. "I suppose I'm not quite as recovered as I would like." he reluctantly admits, closing his eyes against the sun, taking another few deep breaths, curling one hand around the strong arm that's across his chest. "Maybe I'd better go inside.." he says slowly, starting to right himself.

Nodding a little, James kisses the spot right in front of Q's ear before he helps him up onto the dock and follows him out. "Yeah, I think you should rest. I don't want this turning into something like pneumonia." His tone is worried as he watches the young brunette, following him up out of the water, and probably hovering a little, protectively, but he is very concerned about his Quartermaster's health.

Getting a bit annoyed with the hovering, Q gives James' shoulder a weak shove. "I am not going to collapse, Bond." He says, the use of his last name showing his annoyance more than anything. "I'm just a little tired." He says as he dries off, then trudges up the stairs, rubbing the towel over his hair as he goes, straight to the bedroom to change into some boxers and the pants from before, deciding that it's not worth it to put on a shirt at the moment.

Following Q after drying himself off, James hangs the towels up to dry in the bathroom before he goes to change, following the example of the younger man and just putting on a pair of shorts but leaving himself shirtless, before he follows Q out into the main room. Despite the fact that the boffin claims to feel weak, James still finds himself manhandled down onto the couch with a lap full of the brunette who has apparently decided he is more comfortable than the couch cushions. When everything is said and done, James just laughs a little. "Comfortable?" he asks, sounding amused, turning his head to kiss the mop of brunette hair that ended up on his shoulder, with the rest of the pale, lean body leaned back against his chest. Curious more to see what Q's response will be than anything else, the blonde trails the fingers of one hand up the younger man's chest. He may be trying to behave, but the boffin put himself in this situation, and so it's his fault.

"Yes, I am quite comfortable actually. You make a surprisingly good pillow." Q notes simply, arching his back a little as he gets comfortable, which presses his chest into the calloused hands of the double-oh behind him for a moment before he relaxes and folds his arms on top of Bond's.

"Now stay still and behave like a proper pillow."

* * *

**Quick chappy, not really anything important, just a touch of pure fluff. I have a few more things that I want to do for sure, so don't worry! I can only do so much fluff though, so we'll see where it leads.**

**Thank you for everyone who has read so far, hope you're enjoying it! Please let me know what you think!**


	29. Chapter 29

"I was never good at taking orders." Bond points out with a small chuckle, sliding his fingers over the prominent collarbones of the young man in front of him, curling his hand around Q's throat for a moment, just resting his hand there, thumb brushing along his jaw, tilting the brunette's head back to give him a soft kiss, before he releases the man and slides his hand down his neck again, stroking his fingers back over the other man's collarbone before his hand slides down his chest slowly to rest along his stomach. "But I am rather good at following your directions." He points out, turning his head to kiss Q's cheek softly. "Maybe I just needed to hear my orders in a certain posh tenor." he says quietly with a little chuckle.

Q can't help but laugh a little, seeming delighted, after the kiss. "Well, you don't always listen to me either, Bond. Or haven't you noticed?" He asks playfully as he glances back at Bond before he nestles back down comfortably, figuring that the agent's more sturdy frame can support his smaller weight.

Not being able to help himself, James grins as he looks at Q, not having heard him laugh like that often during this trip but he wants to hear it more. "Gorgeous." he mumbles into Q's hair absently before he adds, "I only don't listen to you when I think I have a better plan." He offers with a little smirk as he takes one of Q's hands in his own, stroking his fingers before he brings the hand to his lips to kiss the center of his palm, finally moving them back down to rest around Q's waist, threading their fingers together.

"Your 'better plans' usually don't work so well, maybe you should reconsider that thought process, James." Q says quietly, closing his eyes finally to relax, fingers curling around James' jaw for a moment before he relaxes again. "You need to shave." he mumbles with a small chuckle.

"Would you like to give it a try, my dear Q? Should I trust you with a straight razor?" James asks with a small chuckle. "Or would you just like to watch?" he asks, then he considers the side of Q's face. "Do you ever need to shave?" he asks playfully as he ducks his head to kiss Q's still relatively smooth cheek.

"Well, I'm sorry if I'm not able to grow facial hair two hours after I've shaved." Q grumps quietly, lightly elbowing James in the stomach lightly for a moment, as he shifts into a more comfortable position. Not that he was very uncomfortable in the other position, he more just wanted an excuse to elbow the annoying agent behind him.

A small 'omph' comes from James before he laughs. "Vengeful, aren't you? You remind me of a kitten, Q. You're cool and indifferent to me, shrugging off my affections sometimes, until you're ready to be affectionate, then you come and practically demand it.." He murmurs, highly amused, and of course he doesn't mind giving in to Q's demand for affection. "And when you get angry it's all claws and hissing, teeth baring, but there's never any true threat behind it." he says with another smile as he tightens his arms momentarily around the slim body of his temporary husband. "Very much like a kitten. You even like being pet." He teases, trailing his fingers back up Q's chest again, stroking his skin, watching the way he responds.

Trying very hard to be upset with that description, Q elbows him again, a little harder this time. "I am not sure how I feel about you comparing me to a cat, Bond." He says in a cool tone, before he turns his head a little to watch the older man. "Unless you have a particular liking for cats."

"As a matter of fact.. I do have a liking for cats." James says quietly with another small smile. "If I weren't away so much, I would probably own one." He says before he shrugs slightly. "As it is, there's no point to having a pet when I don't know how often or when I'll be there." he says quietly as he continues to slowly stroke Q's skin, even brushing his calloused fingers over the skin of his neck and up his jaw occasionally.

The soft touches soothe Q, and he relaxes a little more, stretching slightly before going mostly limp. "Really? I would have thought you were more of a dog person." He admits in a quiet tone, taking a deep breath and sighing a little. "I have a cat, you know." he says thoughtfully. "Well, she's still more of a kitten, but she's very mellow. I created an automated feeding mechanism that releases water and food at the correct intervals in case I'm not home on time." He says quietly as he smiles softly. "I'm glad that you're a cat person, it means you two will get along." he says before he thinks about it, and only after it's out of his mouth does he realize that he basically implied that he will be inviting James over at some point. He really needs to remember to think before he speaks, no matter how relaxed he is.

James chuckles a little. "I should have guessed." He says thoughtfully with a small smile. "I look forward to meeting her." he says quietly with another little smile. "I guess it's true that people really do take after their pets." he murmurs with a little chuckle, before tilting his head back against the couch a little. "You've definitely taken after your cat. What's her name?" he asks curiously as his hand stills over the younger man's stomach.

"Lola." Q says before he shrugs slightly. "I'm not very good with names, it was the first female one I really thought of." he says quietly as he looks back at James for a moment, closing his eyes again.

Chuckling softly for a few moments, James nods quietly. "Of course. You would choose something odd. I'm just glad it's not something inane. Lola isn't too bad, in the scheme of pet names." he says before lifting his head to nip at Q's ear softly, kissing just in front of it before placing a soft kiss along his jaw. "Come here.." He murmurs, one hand sliding up again to use his thumb and forefinger to turn Q's head toward him so he can give him a tender kiss.

Unable to resist that low, soft, demanding tone coming from Bond, Q shifts a little, allowing his head to be maneuvered until his lips meet the other man's, responding to the kiss slowly as he relaxes, untangling one hand from Bond's in order to slide it up behind the older man's head, sliding into the short hairs there as he continues the kiss slowly, letting it develop into a lingering snogging session, finally breaking away from the agent's lips, letting out a little sigh, lowering his hand slowly. "I would like to see you shave, see what all the fuss is about." he decides as he looks at the other man. "But not right now. I'm too comfortable." He decides with a little smile.

James smiles and gets comfortable before he merely rests his arms around Q, nodding a little. "I figured." he says with a little smile, admiring Q for a few moments before he comes to a decision.

"Definitely a cat."

* * *

**Shorter than my other chapters, but I think it's cute. I can so picture Q with a pair of cat ears. Cute!**

**Let me know what you think, comments/reviews welcome!**


	30. Chapter 30

This time, Q is not the first one to drift off to sleep, allowing him to listen as James' breathing slowly evens out and his arms go limp. Not really wanting to sleep, Q finally, and very carefully, extracts himself from the agent's arms, going to retrieve his laptop and bringing it out onto the deck area, glad for the overhang since it looks like an evening storm is coming through, this one less menacing than the clouds from the other day, the rain light and more normal for the afternoons. While the older man sleeps, he takes advantage to log into MI6's mainframe and see how things are doing, checking up on the status of their original mission to see if they got what is needed and to make sure that them staying around isn't just an excuse until part two of the mission is revealed.

Feeling a bit relieved after reading the reports, Q gives a slight cough and gets up to make himself a cup of tea silently before he heads back to his laptop and logs into Q-branch to see the status of some of the projects, sending out some sneaky notes to R, not letting the man know who the notes are from and covering his tracks but he chose his second in command well, and he knows that the older man will understand. After doing that, he logs out and works on some coding he keeps meaning to get around to but never seems to have time to. Having rescued his phone when he got his tea, Q is somewhat unsurprised when it rings and he quickly picks it up.

"Q." He answers in his normal way, trying to keep his voice somewhat low though so that he doesn't wake James. Honestly, he's surprised that the agent is such a heavy sleeper, considering his line of work, but maybe it's just because he knows, subconsciously, where he is and who he's with.

"Q.. you are supposed to be relaxing and enjoying tropical sunshine, not sneaking into MI6 networks and leaving cheeky little notes for people." Moneypenny says in a playful tone, her smile showing in her tone of voice, but from the background noise she is likely in her office.

"I'm bored. I am relaxing. And there's no sunshine. It's raining again. Besides, I don't want to get a sunburn." Q says as he looks down at his skin, already a bit pink just from the earlier foray into the water without sunscreen. Nothing that hurts or won't go away in a day or two, but it's a bit sensitive.

Eve laughs a little again, her chair creaking a little as she leans back. "My, my, Q.. are you pouting? Is Bond not keeping you diverted?" She asks, her tone mischievous and a bit wicked. "Or have you tired him out already?"

Sighing a little in exasperation, Q shakes his head for a few moments, putting the phone between his head and shoulder as he types. "Your imagination is clearly overactive, Eve. Nothing has happened between James and I. Though the sleeping arrangements have been interesting. James is a surprisingly heavy sleeper." He says thoughtfully as he looks past the laptop out over the water.

"So you've had to test that, have you? When did you start calling Bond by his first name?" Eve asks with amusement, grinning a little again. "You're quite comfortable in your role, maybe you should make it official." he continues to tease the younger man.

"I am hanging up now, Eve." Q threatens, frowning a little at the phone. "Because you are being utterly ridiculous." he adds after a moment.

"Q, wait! Ok.. I'm sorry, I can't help it. You two are always so adorable together, flirting like you do." Eve says before she smiles. "Why don't you tell me what's been happening, then? Anything good, at all? I promise, just between you and me. You know this is a secure line." She nearly begs, wanting any details that Q will be willing to provide her.

Huffing softly in exasperation, but on the other hand wanting to talk to someone about what's been going on, Q frowns a little, then finally puts the laptop on the table and sits back. "Alright. But if any of this gets out, I will know who leaked it, and you know what I can do." he threatens before he looks up at the sky, then hangs his head back a little to look at the ceiling of the deck. "It's been.. interesting. We decided to share a bed, since we're both adults. Seems Bond is a bit of a cuddler, actually." he says before he smiles. "Though it's rather nice. It's been a long time since I shared a bed with anyone. I was telling the truth, though. Nothing sexual has happened. We have had to maintain a certain amount of intimacy, to convince people we are a couple, of course." he says slowly, not sure how much he should reveal. "And there may or may not be some cuddling." he says simply before he blushes a little, saying it out loud makes it seem so much more real. He starts thinking about what will have to happen when they go back to England and he sighs a little since he doesn't want to think about it just yet, just wants to enjoy a few more days with the double-oh sleeping in the other room.

"James Bond, going almost two weeks without seducing anyone or shagging someone? I think I may die of shock." Eve says with a little laugh. "It sounds like he's become quite devoted to you, Q. You should take advantage of that while you can. He has to keep up the appearances of you two being married, and therefore not cheat on you with one of the surely many attractive women there, but when you two come back you won't be on a mission and you won't be anything more than a blip on Commander Bond's radar." She warns quietly, not wanting Q to get hurt by reading something more into it than what she thinks is probably going on.

For a few moments, Q considers that and then he sighs softly. "As always, I am sure you are right, Miss Moneypenny. This is a vacation, a stolen moment and it won't continue once we're back on British soil. I am not an imbecile, Eve. And yes, I may be planning to enjoy this while it lasts. Going back to my empty flat is very unappealing at this moment. Thank you for reminding me of that and putting everything in such harsh perspective." He says in a frustrated tone, sighing a little. "I think I'm going to sign off now, Eve, and go for a swim." he says as he leans forward and shuts his computer down, finishing his cup of tea.

Eve sighs a little for a few moments, and she remains silent for a moment more. "I'm sorry, Q. I just don't want you to get hurt, I know how you are so analytical with everything but emotions and your personal life. You don't always think them through. I don't want you hurt because you read something into your relationship with Bond right now. Something that isn't there. Take it from me, Q. Bond is not one to be tied down." She says in a firmer tone.

"Yes. Of course. Thank you." Q says, his tone cold and emotionless again. "Goodbye. Miss Moneypenny." he says before promptly hanging up, staring at the phone in his hand for a moment, feeling like throwing it at something but it is not exactly an inexpensive piece of tech so he's not going to just throw it away. He is not a certain double-oh named James Bond. So instead he chooses to return it to its place in the bedroom, plugging it up to charge as he leaves his laptop in there as well, and then he lays down on his back on the bed, arms out to either side of him, staring at the ceiling as he goes over everything that has happened since they arrived. The things that Bond said, the reassurances and the sweet words, wondering if they're all real or if any of it is real, and afraid that it may be real, which would mean that he is agonizing over nothing.

Finally, he grabs a pillow and pulls it over to himself, putting hit over his head, only to realize that it's Bond's pillow and it smells like the agent. Shifting a little, he turns on his side and hugs the pillow to his chest.

"Bloody hell.. what am I going to do?"

* * *

**Bad Moneypenny. Q and Bond really need to talk about what is going to happen when they return to England. Maybe next chapter they will have that little chat.**

**Thank you everyone for reading, I hope you enjoy this, and please let me know what you think!**


	31. Chapter 31

When Bond wakes up, the first thing he notices is the suspicious lack of warmth on top of him, sighing a little as he realizes somehow Q moved without waking him. He is getting far too much sleep on this vacation, for no other reason than he has nothing else to do. He is really very lazy it seems. Pulling himself into a sitting position with a slight wince, the blonde takes a moment to stretch out the kinks and tight muscles that formed from him laying on the couch at an odd angle. Slowly, he gets up, stretches again, and then goes in search of the younger man since he doesn't see him in the main living area. A quick look says he's not on the deck or in the water, so the last check is the bedroom, where James finds him curled up around a pillow, asleep, fully clothed, and on top of the covers. Which means he probably didn't mean to fall asleep.

For a moment James just watches him, admiring the way his face relaxes in sleep, making him look innocent and vulnerable. But he's ultimately a selfish man so instead of leaving Q to sleep, he crawls up onto the bed, stretching out next to him and gently trying to remove the pillow from his gangly arms. He finally manages it and tucks it under his own head before he moves in closer, placing small kisses over the younger man's face, trying to wake him up since they really should eat something. Finally, he starts to place soft kisses against the brunette's lips softly.

A few moments later and Q is responding to the kisses, sleepily at first, but with growing confidence as he starts to wake up. Slowly, one arm slides up and around James as the kiss grows from gentle to passionate. And while his body is clearly awake, his mind hasn't quite engaged itself as the kiss accelerates. And by the time his mind engages and wakes up fully, it can't do much more than say 'Fuck it all' and give in to his desires. All of the emotional and physical turmoil in the last few days comes to a head and any and all thoughts of denying himself disappears as he grabs James and pulls him down into a more passionate kiss.

James, never one to deny himself or anyone else of what they want, is more than happy to give Q what he wants, and thankfully he came prepared for such an eventuality. After making thorough use of the bed, they end up in the tub together again, since the agent doesn't want Q to be too sore. Not that the brunette is a virgin or anything but it's been long enough to leave his muscles pleasantly sore.

Holding Q against his chest in the hot water, James dips his head and kisses his shoulder. "Not that I am complaining one bit, Q.." He says softly, smiling as he looks at one of the marks he left on the pale skin of the boffin. "But what changed your mind?" He asks with a little smile as he rubs the wash cloth over the younger man's chest and shoulders soothingly.

With eyes closed and head tilted back against the blonde agent, Q sighs a little. "I got tired of fighting." He says before he shrugs a little. "Perhaps I wanted to see what the fuss was about." he says before he chuckles a little. "Seems there was quite a bit to make a fuzz about, afterall." He adds, shifting to get comfortable again. "I wanted the memory of this place to be complete, and happy." He admits quietly, still feeling a little insecure about what is going to happen when they get back to MI6.

"It's not as if this is all going to go away when we get back to London, Q." James says quietly, watching the younger man's face before he realizes what is going on and he sighs. "That's what you're afraid of, isn't it?" he asks curiously, "That things will be different when we're back in London. That what, I only want you now because we're on a mission?" He asks, sighing a little. "Bloody hell.. For a genius, you can be an idiot, Q." he says quietly with an affectionate smile, kissing the side of his head gently.

A small sigh comes from Q as he relaxes, glancing back at James for a moment. "Moneypenny called while you were asleep. She... warned me about getting attached to you. That you'll just end up hurting me. I suppose it left me feeling a little insecure." he says quietly as he looks up at the ceiling with a slightly unfocused eyes since his glasses are still on the night stand in the bedroom.

"Eve?" James asks, a little surprised, before he smirks a little. "Well, if sex is the way you deal with your emotions, I will happily volunteer myself." He offers with amusement. "You'll want to discuss what will happen when we go home, I imagine." he says as he looks at the young man in his arms.

Q sighs a little and then takes a deep breath, "Later. Not tonight. I don't want to think about MI6 or London tonight." he says quietly, reaching out to take Bond's left hand in his, bringing it around to cradle it in one hand while the index finger of his other traces over the lines of his palm, touching the ring for a few moments before stroking the calluses on his hand as well, examining a few small scars that are almost hidden, even with Bond's tan.

Nodding a little in understanding, James smiles a little. "Shall we just pretend we are the married couple we're posing at, darling?" He asks with a little grin, placing a soft kiss on Q's shoulder before nuzzling against her neck. "I think we can make it even more realistic now. I think we should put your stamina to the test, Q.. see if you can keep up with an old man like me." he says with a wicked grin as he looks at the brunette's profile.

Laughing a little at the double-oh, Q links their left hands together and then smiles. "I think that would be rather interesting.. Shall we throw ourselves into our roles, for the time that we have left?" He asks as he looks at James over his shoulder, placing a soft kiss against the older man's lips.

James can't help but grin at the younger man in his arms, and then he nods quietly. "I think we shall, Q."He says before he sits up a little straighter and leans in for a deeper kiss. "Do you think you've quite recovered?" He asks, hands starting to move over the brunette's body with a little more purpose now.

Another small smile slides over Q's face, and he nods slowly, stretching slowly. "Yes.. I'm feeling quite a bit better." He says slowly as he reaches back to run his long fingers through the cropped hair of the older man.

"Take me back to bed, James. Let's see if you truly live up to your reputation."

* * *

**Little short bit of fluff. At least we know what Q will be doing for stress relief now. :D**

**Hope you're all enjoying this, please let me know what you think!**


	32. Chapter 32

James certainly does live up to his reputation, and he keeps Q's mind occupied over the next day or so, but before long it's time for them to start preparing for returning to London. The first time it occurs to either of them is after their cleaning is delivered back to their room, and James pushes Q up against the wall after the door closes, pinning his hands to the wall beside his head as he kisses him deeply, slowly pulling back to work his lips over the sensitive places on the boffin's neck, where there are still several fading marks.

"Bloody hell, James, you're insatiable." Q groans, tilting his head back a little. "Am I going to have to keep lube and condoms in my office in case you attack me there?" he asks with a little laugh, though he does enjoy the thought of being bent over his desk.

A moment passes before the words sink in and James pulls his head back with a wicked smile as he looks into the green eyes of the young man, meshing their hands together slowly. "I like that." He says with a nod of his head. "You drive me crazy, Q. Bloody hell, I am going to have to work to focus on missions, and not think about how you sound screaming my name." he says with a broad grin. "The answer is yes, you will need to keep certain preparations in your office, just in case. Might have to get you a gag, though.. you are very noisy." he notes thoughtfully, before he goes back to kissing along Q's neck.

A small sigh is given and as much as Q is enjoying the attention, he finally pushes James away from him, freeing his hand and pushing him away a little more. The only reason he's able to do this is because Bond knows full well the brunette doesn't like being trapped for real, even if he does enjoy giving up control once in a while. "You need to start controlling yourself again, James. We only have another day before we have to go back to London." He says as he walks away and over to pick at the remaining pastries from breakfast.

Smirking a little, James walks over behind Q, catching his wrist and redirecting a bit of pastry from the brunette's mouth to his own before releasing him. "We never talked about the rules." He says as he moves to sit down on the couch, lazily stretching out with one hand along the back of the couch.

Considering the question for a moment, most of it having been thought over before by Q when he was alone, the young boffin turns to look at James. "Considering Eve's response to the possibility of us having relations, I don't want anyone at work to know we're in any sort of relationship beyond friendship." he says as he looks at James. "Which means you will have to reign in your flirting. No physical affection unless we are alone." He decides as he looks at James, staying where he is so that most of the room is between them, feeling the need for distance for this conversation, in order to keep his mind clear.

James nods as he looks up at Q, considering it for a few moments, "Alright. But that means you have to allow me to come over to your place. To cook for you. And I may arrange food to be anonymously delivered if you won't allow me to bring it myself. To make sure you're taking care of yourself." he says seriously as he watches Q, taking a slow, deep breath. "I could hurt Moneypenny for saying those things to you, for making you doubt me." he says in an annoyed tone.

"Don't, James. I don't even want Eve to know about us." Q says in a firm tone. "She lost her right to that when she went from asking for details about what happened between us to warning me away from you." he says with a slight huff. "I don't want anyone to have any excuse to doubt the competence or professionalism of either of us," he says as he watches James, finally giving in and walking over to sit beside him, fitting himself against the agent's side.

A small nod is given as James pulls Q close against his side. "Alright. We'll keep it to ourselves, Q. A Quartermaster and a double-oh can surely keep something like this a secret." He says with amusement as he looks at the man sitting beside him, leaning over to kiss him. "What do you want to do on our last day here?" he asks, looking the lean man over. "I never did get you enough sun.." he says with a little laugh. "You won't even have a tan line.." he says as he reaches over to finger Q's wedding ring. "Pity. I sort of liked you wearing something that told everyone else you were taken." he says as he leans in to kiss the brunette's neck again softly.

Q hums softly, tilting his head up to give James access for a few moments before he reluctantly moves away. "You won't have a tan line, either." he says quietly, looking down at the ring. "I suppose I could get a simple band for my right hand. It wouldn't be as obvious, but it would mean something to you and I." he says as he looks up at James. "And I could put a GPS tracker in it, so if I were ever to be kidnapped it would be a useful bit of jewelry." He says thoughtfully as he looks down at the ring again, spinning it around his finger a little with his thumb, fiddling with it for a few moments.

"Oh.. I like that idea.." James admits, lifting Q's right hand to kiss the palm gently, his possessive side liking the idea of some bit of jewelry that only Q and he knows the true meaning of. Plus, a simple band wouldn't interfere in anything that Q has to do, he's already proven that he can adapt to typing with a ring. "We'll have to go shopping for a ring for you. Of course, you'd have to explain it if people suddenly see you wearing a ring, you're not one for jewelry." he says with a little smirk, waiting to see what the beautiful boffin wants to say to that.

Q shrugs a little before he smiles. "I'll tell the truth. My boyfriend is a possessive bastard who wanted to brand me, but the only thing I would allow was a ring on my right hand." he explains matter-of-factly as he sits up, leaning forward and pulling his laptop over, loading it up and quickly searching for pictures of men's wedding bands since that seems like the most likely way he'll find simple rings, discarding most of the ideas because they either don't fit what he needs to put the GPS in, or they're just plain ugly. Finally, he pulls up the picture of a simple Tungsten band with a dragon celtic design inlay in it. It's also thick enough for him to modify. "Perfect." He decides as he sits back, looking over at James.

Amusedly watching Q, who seems to immediately want to put any plan into action when he has made a decision, James grins a little. "I am a bit possessive, I suppose." he says quietly as he kisses Q's shoulder, watching him go through designs. When the final decision is made and presented to him, he can't help but smile."I get the feeling you might be giving a little nod to my heritage there." he says as he looks at the design, then adds, "I think it would suit you."

And that brings something to mind that Q didn't think about until just then. "You will not leave any visible marks." he says in a firm tone. "Nothing that cannot be covered up by my normal shirts." He says as he looks at James seriously, this being one thing that he's going to be very adamant about sine he feels strongly about it. "I will not have Q-branch laughing at me, thinking I'm some sort of teenager who can't control his partner."

"And what makes you think you could ever control me, Q?" James asks with amusement, but at the glare he receives, he nods a little and kisses the frown away. "Right. No visible marks. I'll just have to make up for it in places no one else can see." he says with a little smirk as he looks over the younger man's body slowly.

Sighing in exasperation, Q rolls his eyes a little before he turns away and goes back to his laptop, ordering two of the rings in his size, just in case he screws one up, having them mailed priority to his office, sending a quick email to R to let him know that there is a package being sent to his office, and for it not to be opened, it's for a project. Finally, he shuts down the laptop, hesitating before he turns and straddles James' lap, but only so he can cuddle properly against his chest and nuzzle the man's neck. "I think perhaps a little swimming, perhaps a walk tomorrow. Today, I don't want to leave the room.." he murmurs softy against the agent's neck. "Now that it comes to it, I almost don't want to leave." he says softly, sitting back slowly and resting his hands on James' abdomen slowly as he watches the man.

A small nod is given and James smiles at his quartermaster. "I understand." He says as he pulls Q down, kissing him deeply. "It will be hard to leave you again for another mission." he admits reluctantly before he sits back, nodding quietly as he considers what Q wants to do, his hands resting on the lean man's hips.

"Your wish is my command, Q."

* * *

**Phew, finally got something out, it's been bugging me for the last few days. But I got my two little one-shots out that have been plugging up my brain, so now I can focus on my stories again! Q and Bond are just.. adorable. Gosh. So adorable.**

**Anyway, let me know what you think, Reviews/comments welcome!**


	33. Chapter 33

The time goes far too fast, and before they know it, the men are dressing for London weather, packing everything up, and they officially check out of their room after doing a final sweep. On the drive back to the airport, Q is jittery, knee bouncing in the passenger's side of the door. One more thing that they did do on their last day was take walks and hike, and take lots and lots of pictures. For once, Q is glad that he brought a camera with him, and he's quite content with the photos that he got, already having plans to print out a few of them of him and Bond. He's sentimental like that. But right now his eyes are glued to the scenery as they pass it by, only looking over when James put his hand on the brunette's knee.

"It's alright, Q. You got here just fine, I have another one of those pills for you, you'll be fine on your way back." James reassures with a little smile, rubbing his knee gently as he looks over at Q briefly, then looks back to the road as he drives.

Nodding a little, Q puts his hand over James' and he smiles, giving it a little squeeze. He doesn't say anything, though, not feeling that he has to. He just waits, silent as they get to the airport and checked in, eventually onto the plane itself, and that is when his nervousness starts to manifest itself again. This time he is aware of the pill that he's taking, and he takes it with a bottle of water, before he leans against James, having the aisle seat this time just to make sure he isn't tempted to look out. Though he's hoping that he won't be conscious for that long.

James just smiles at the man next to him, taking his hand and kissing the back of it gently. "Just try and relax, Q. You'll be home before you know it, taking in the cold London air." he says quietly with a little smile as he watches him, leaning in and kissing his lips softly. "Just focus on me, Quinton.. I am sure that brilliant mind of yours is capable of that." he says playfully, watching as the young man starts to get sleepy, then he pulls him over to rest on the agent's shoulder.

Two flights later, they are finally back in London, but neither are in any shape to go back to MI6 just yet, so James hails a cab outside the airport, letting Q tell the man his address before James pulls the boffin close to him again.

It's late evening London time when they get to Q's apartment, dragging their suitcases up, knowing this will be their last night of peace for a while, in all likelihood. The inside of Q's apartment is not exactly what James imagined. It's actually rather modern, with leather furniture and a large TV, though there is a conspicuous lack of tech otherwise. He knows that there must be some strange security system because of the way the younger man opens the door, and there are books spread out everywhere with papers, sketchbooks and notebooks all laying around.

A happy tabby cat comes hurrying from the other room, meowing and winding itself around Q's legs before she steps over to sniff at Bond, meowing curiously at him until she's picked up by the agent, at which point she starts purring contentedly when she gets the attention she's craving.

"Well, it seems she approves." Q says tiredly as he drags his suitcase into the bedroom and drops it there, shedding some of his clothes before he goes to make himself a cup of tea. "I want nothing more than to sleep." he says before he returns to James, petting Lola and pressing his face into her fur for a moment. "Missed you, love." he says softly to the cat with a little smile.

James watches Q and then smiles, finally setting Lola down, much to her objections, and he then looks at the younger man, leaning in and giving him a slow, deep kiss. "Then let's get you some tea and get you to bed." he says quietly with a little smile at Q.

Nodding quietly, Q responds to the kiss in kind, leaning against the agent for a few moments before he adds, "Too many clothes." As he looks at the man, smirking before he goes to make Bond a cup of instant coffee, not great but it's the best he can do, and himself a cup of tea. When he comes back out, James is down to just his shirt and trousers, and that sight makes Q smile. "I could get used to seeing you here like that, James." he says quietly as he sips his tea, looking the agent over slowly.

Bond chuckles as he sips at his coffee and he nods, taking Q's hand and then leads him back toward the bedroom where he saw the younger man disappear before, squeezing his hand a little. "Come on, let's get ready for bed, I think we deserve a little bit of a cuddle." he says quietly, putting his coffee down on the side of the bed that he's claimed as his basically, then he undresses down to his pants, pulling the covers back slowly, at least glad to see that Q had changed the sheets and made the bed before he left. Finally, he sits down on the edge of the bed and watches the brunette undress.

Sighing a little, Q puts down his tea after taking a longer drink, and then he undresses as well, finding a shirt to put on and wear to bed, leaving him in just his shirt and pants. Crawling into bed, he collects his tea, waiting until Bond is sitting properly against the headboard before he leans back against him, head back against the older man's shoulder. "Tomorrow, we test our acting skills, 007." He says coolly, but he's too relaxed to keep up any proper banter between the two, still feeling the effects of his drugs which are slowing his mind and just make him want to sleep. He finishes his tea and sets the mug aside, before moving away from bond to slip down and lay on the bed properly.

A small nod is given from Bond and he watches his genius with a small shake of his head. He takes a moment longer to finish his coffee before he gets up, turning off the lights before he returns to bed, laying down and pulling Q over against him, giving him a long kiss. Normally he might try to make more of the kiss than just a kiss, but at the moment he knows that it's probably best to wait until morning to think of seducing his Quartermaster. "I assure you, Q, I am a very good actor." he says with a little smirk before nuzzling into the mop of curly hair that he has come to adore so much. "Goodnight, Q." he says slowly as he rubs the man's back.

Q cuddles up close into James' arms, kissing him in return, then placing a soft kiss against the agent's neck before he removes his glasses and sets them aside, then settles down comfortably against James, giving a broad yawn before he sighs, smiling softly.

"Goodnight, James. Tomorrow, we face MI6."

End.

* * *

**And that's the end! Sorry if it seemed to have stopped somewhat abruptly, but I ran out of things for them to do at the resort, and wanted it to end when they got back to London anyway. I may or may not do a sequel in the future, but at the moment I am taking a step back from this story line. I do have two other OOQ stories I'm working on right now, Boarding School Bond and When the Dust Settles, so I hope you will check them out if you enjoyed this one.**

**Also, check out Duochanfan's Heart in the Storm! This fic started when we came up with an idea together, and challenged eachother to write our own versions of the same idea. And trust me, they are very different!**

**Thank you all for reading, I hope you enjoyed it. As always, reviews/comments are welcome!**


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